Impervious
by JewelAlchemist
Summary: Alphonse's restored body is slowly falling apart. What will Edward do when his brother's life is on the line, and how can he stop the homunculi at the same time? Based off Bluebird's Illusion, Pride!Ed ending. Rated T for violence and some language. No pairings. :D
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey guys. D: This is my first fanfiction I've uploaded, and I'm really scared. Well, this started off as a little drabble about the fanmade game Bluebird's Illusion, but I turned it into a plot. I have played the game and I'm going to be roughly following that plot, though I might throw in my own scenes here and there. It's based off the Pride!Ed ending of the game. You don't really have to know of or play the game to understand this, but it helps sometimes.**

**There's some violence and language, but nothing more than it was in the anime or manga (albeit the manga was a little more gruesome). There's no pairings or yaoi/yuri in here either, because I'm not really that kind of person (anymore) to write stuff like that. So yeah. C: The updating pattern might be a bit weird, because of school and all...**

**Hope you enjoy. D'x *still crying because of being scared* **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. All rights belong to Hiromu Arakawa and Ocean X (the creators of Bluebird's Illusion). The only thing I own is the cover picture, I drew that a few months ago haha. c:**

* * *

_~ x ~_

_When mother closed her eyes,_  
_And let go of my hand,_  
_From that point, I felt the bluebird in my life had flown away forever,_  
_Never to return..._

_But..._  
_When I grasped Al's warm hand again,_  
_And saw his gentle smile once more,_  
_I suddenly felt I was within the blue skies,_  
_And saw a glimpse of my bluebird..._

_I have nothing more I can hope for..._  
_I just wish...I just wish we can always be like this._  
_Wishing all this will never disappear..._  
_I only wish that my bluebird..._

_...Won't be another unattainable illusion._

* * *

"Brother! Brother, wake up!"

Edward Elric groaned and turned over on his side, gripping the blankets tightly. Alphonse Elric, his younger brother, sighed before prodding him a second time.

"Come on! You don't want to be late! Today's your first day as colonel!" Al reminded him. Ed cracked open one golden eye before sitting up. Al grinned in triumph. He knew his older brother would be tough to wake up, though considering he had been promoted recently, he figured he'd put at least a little more effort into getting out of bed. "Hurry up and get dressed, breakfast is ready, so don't be too long!"

"Right, sure." Ed muttered.

Before Al left the room, he turned around and reminded him, "Brush your teeth and wash your face first, alright?"

Ed only grunted in reply. His brother rolled his eyes before leaving the room to go downstairs. At least Al could treat him a little better, considering he had to go to that horrible place and put up with Roy's pestering. Not to mention gloating, as he'd been promoted to General at the same time as he had been promoted to Colonel. Ed stretched before doing as Al had asked to him to. Secondly, he turned to stare at his new uniform. It didn't really suit him, he thought. Though he put it on anyway, leaving his jacket off and going downstairs.

"There you are!" Al scolded. "Hurry up and eat your breakfast before it goes cold."

Ed sat down and started to eat, completely ignoring the glass of milk next to his plate. After he had done, he tried to sneak off, before Al stopped him and glared. "Brother, don't be such a picky eater!" He pointed to the glass of milk.

"This isn't a matter of being a picky eater, Al! That white stuff comes from a cow!" Ed protested.

"Milk is very nutritious! It's the reason why you're so short, because you don't drink it!" Al shot back. Ed grinded his teeth in a rage.

"I said I'm not drinking it! Anyway, the reason I'm like this is because my automail's too heavy." He said before leaving the table to put his uniform jacket on. While he was dressing, Al zoned out. It had been several months since his older brother had regained his body, but he'd never gotten his own back to normal himself. Something didn't seem fair to him.

"Brother, I've meant to ask you... how come I have my body back and you don't...?" He asked, though realised that Ed couldn't hear him as he was too busy fumbling with his uniform. With a sigh, Al decided to help him put it on properly.

Afterwards, Ed looked at himself up and down in the mirror. He was so used to his other clothes that he looked rather strange. It didn't feel all that comfortable either, but he figured he'd get used to it in due time. Al grinned. "Well, someone looks grown up."

Ed laughed in response before opening the front door and stepping out. Alphonse smiled after his brother disappeared down the street.

"_Uugh!_" Al suddenly gripped his left arm and leaned forward. Seconds later, he realised it was another pain. Of course he didn't tell Ed, because he'd only panic. He'd been having these after the first month of his body being restored. His arm trembled and he gritted his teeth.

Al didn't know what was going on, but he knew there was something definitely wrong with him.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ed noticed a car pull up on the street. He noticed Roy Mustang's hand wave to him. "Get in, Fullmetal, before you make us all late."

Ed snorted and rolled his eyes before getting in next to him, turning his head instantly. Ed noticed that First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye and Second Lieutenant Jean Havoc were there with the new General Roy Mustang, though they were pretty silent on the way. Roy decided to break the ice by teasing his colleague.

"Hey, what's up? Being promoted on the first day and you have that kind of look on your face? What happened, an argument with Alphonse?" He asked Ed, noticing his sour mood.

"We don't argue!" He shot back.

Roy cocked an eyebrow. "So you don't like the Führer's decision to make you a Colonel, then?"

"So what if I don't?" Ed snapped in response. "I'm pretty sure that you have much more you're not happy with!"

Roy laughed and started going on about the Equivalent Exchange motto that all Alchemists went by. Edward decided to ignore him and glared out of the window instead, watching a few blue birds on the tops of houses. They flew away almost as soon as he glanced at them, so he turned to the sky instead. Letting out a sigh, he told himself that the day ahead of wasn't going to be as bad as he thought.

Once they arrived at Central Headquarters, Ed immediately started to whine about being given menial work instead of a proper mission or report to start him off. He'd been asked to bring_ tea_ of all things to the Führer and even Roy. He'd been complaining about it while he was carrying it over to them. He'd earlier seen Roy handing the Führer a report and he'd been praised and asked to stay for tea, and Ed had been unlucky enough to bring it to them.

While he was taking a tray full of teacups and a teapot, he overheard a couple of soldiers talking about him and about how they were amazed at him become a Colonel at only 17, making him the youngest Colonel in the history of Amestris. Edward grinned after listening and was put into a better mood until he ran into Riza Hawkeye, who saluted him.

"Edward, no, Colonel Elric!" She said. "If I might ask, why are you carrying a teapot?"

Ed sighed. "It's Mustang, he said it was part of my job as the Führer's secretary."

"You mean the General asked you to make tea?" Riza asked.

"Yeah, while the other department could've sent it themselves. They never really gave me a reason." Ed explained, rolling his eyes. Riza nodded in understanding. Ed glanced at a clock on the wall. "Alright, I can't keep them waiting, bye!"

"Oh, goodbye Colonel!" Riza called after the short teenager had hurried away. He was a little too independent, in her opinion. His stubbornness was going to get him into a lot of trouble one day.

Later in the Führer's office, Roy was having a good time laughing at his own jokes.

"And this is the first time I've tried Colonel Elric's tea! Though I'm afraid the taste is a little off." He said with a smirk.

"Oh, I do apologise!" Ed spat sarcastically. "But I'm not the one who made it."

"Ah, that's right. It's not like you could make anything." Roy laughed and received a hiss as a response. Führer Bradley spoke up after taking a sip of his tea.

"If I'm not mistaken, Colonel Elric used to work under you," He said to Roy, who nodded. "What did he do?"

Roy pondered for a second. "Well... usually, he'd be sent around the country to investigate the administration of other officials. As you can see, his young appearance is the best form of undercover!" He said with a smile. Ed didn't reply, being too busy resisting the urge to jump over the table and strangle the man.

Eventually, Roy received a message to take care of something so he left after a while. Ed sighed in relief as he walked out of the door. How he hated that man... What he wouldn't give to beat him senseless. Why was he even here in the first place?

"It seems General Mustang thinks highly of you!" Führer Bradley cut into his thoughts.

"Really, sir?" Ed looked at him in surprise.

He nodded. "Yes. I think he's quite a valuable asset too; being able to become General in his early thirties. And I'm sure you must be working towards that goal. You'd better get yourself ready, Fullmetal."

Ed nodded in silence before the Führer dismissed him. After he left, Bradley snickered to himself.

"It seems... the wait is about to end."

* * *

The day went past slowly. Edward had finished his work and had managed to avoid Roy for most of the time. Fuery told him he was busy with at least four times the amount of paper he'd received at the rank of Colonel, and even skipped his lunch to work on them. Well, the cafeteria wouldn't miss him. Roy took all the good food before anyone else had the chance, a little game he used to play with Maes Hughes.

Ed was back in the Führer's office, slouched against one of the big cushioned chairs. Bradley was rambling on about something and he had decided to zone out for a while. When he seemed to pause, Ed realised it hadn't been a good idea to ignore everything around him.

"Oh, what was that, sir?" he asked hurriedly. Bradley frowned before repeating his question.

"I asked if you could work overtime tonight, Fullmetal."

The blond alchemist scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "If you don't mind sir, I need to get back to Alphonse, he said he hasn't been feeling that well lately. Is it okay if I work overtime tomorrow?"

"No problem, take your time. I hope you'll be prepared so you can start work earlier," Bradley smiled and checked his watch. "Ah, I need to go home now. Perhaps next time, you can come over to my house for a short visit? Selim is very eager to see you."

"Oh, of course!" Ed replied with his own smile and turned to leave. The Führer left quickly and not long after that, Roy caught up with him.

He tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, wait up. What's the rush?"

"I just want to get home quickly and have dinner with Al," Ed replied, pushing the General's hand away.

"Can I ask about how you two are doing?"

"Don't worry about it, Colonel!"

"It's _General_, and don't do anything dangerous, alright?" Roy asked. Ed sighed and nodded before leaving. Roy frowned after he left and noticed Riza arriving.

"So he still won't tell you anything?" She questioned, watching Ed quickly leave the grounds.

Roy shook his head and turned to face her. "Or perhaps he feels like I can't help him." He mumbled, shoving his hands into his pockets, feeling slightly upset. Despite how much he teased Ed, he never really got to the point of unsettling him. It wasn't himself to put his comrades in a bad mood, even though he admitted he was slightly irritating sometimes. That and the fact Ed had rushed home to see Al lately.

"Perhaps he doesn't want you worrying about him, sir." Riza fiddled with her paperwork, avoiding the General's eyes.

"Maybe."

* * *

By the time he arrived at the house, Alphonse was waiting for him by the front door.

"Am I late, Al?" Ed called over to his brother, who responded by shaking his head and smiling at him.

"No, I came outside for some fresh air and decided to wait for you. I've got the oven on; what do you fancy for dinner?" he asked, standing up straight from leaning against the porch. Ed looked up into the sky as he thought of an answer to give.

"You know what, make our favourite." he finally said with a grin.

Al laughed, "Stew it is."

Fifteen minutes later, the two brothers were busy eating the stew that Al prepared.

"You know, I think you're getting better at this," Ed commented, his mouth full of food. Al tsked and waved a hand at him.

"Brother, close your mouth when you're eating!"

Ed wiped his mouth with a napkin and stopped talking. After he had swallowed he said, "You're right, sorry Al."

He had forgotten how much his brother liked table manners... and pretty much any manners. He was a tidy boy, always refolding clothes until they were perfect and scolding him when he left a mess behind. Alphonse never went overboard with his cleanliness, which made it bearable.

"How are you doing with your documents?" He asked after a long pause. Ed swallowed quickly and grinned weakly.

"There's so many of them, I understand how Mustang feels about them now. Al laughed and carried on picking at his dinner. He didn't really feel like eating,  
since he'd had quite a few pains along his body today. He did manage to swallow some food down so his brother wouldn't be concerned about him. He knew he wasn't feeling all that well, but he didn't want him phoning a hospital, considering how panicky he could get.

Ed broke the silence with a stretch and a loud yawn. Standing up, he gathered his plate and utensils before walking over to the kitchen. "I'm going to go for a quick shower before bed, Al. See you up there."

"You know," Al called in. "A glass of milk after a shower will make you feel great."

"Oh, no I'm feeling just fine," Was his reply. Al sighed in frustration.

"_Brother!_"

"No, Al!" Ed walked back into the room, hands on his hips. Al had already started to clear away his own plate, not taking his eyes from Ed.

"But your body needs it!" He protested, pointing a finger at Ed's chest.

His brother scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Look Al, my body is still strong, with or without the milk. Of course I don't need it to get strong; haven't I grown since I joined the military? See, all it takes is a little training. Milk won't solve anything." He gave him a large grin. "Don't get so worked up about it."

Not being able to contain himself, Al set his plate down and glared his brother in the eyes. "Then why hasn't your body been restored?" Ed was silent. "Why hasn't it been restored, Brother? Answer my question!"

Ed remained quiet before he smiled weakly. "Well, maybe it's because I need to train more." He gave him a quick wave before going upstairs. Al felt his head hang as he slumped in his chair, burying his face in his hands to hide his vexation.

When he arrived upstairs, Ed looked out of the window. "Al, have I really done the right thing? Perhaps... I should have waited?"

* * *

A low cackle echoed off the pipe-filled walls and down the damp, grimy corridors. Sitting on his throne, Father listened to two of his sons while he held up his head with the back of his hand. Envy sat on one of the wires, his legs swinging back and forth while Wrath stood upright, arms behind his back and his eyes closed.

"Wait 'til you see how worried the pipsqueak'll be!" Envy laughed, a wide grin spread across his lips. "It'll be hilarious!"

"It won't be for some time until his container will rot away; I'd estimate around two months at least." Wrath told him calmly, glancing at his older brother for less than a second. "So don't get too excited."

The green-haired homunculus pouted and turned to Father, who didn't seem interested. Of course, he knew everything, so there was no need for him to listen. It just happened that Envy and Wrath started a little conversation between themselves in the same room as him, unfortunately.

"Father," Envy suddenly asked. His father's golden eyes opened. "When do we tell Fullmetal about his brother's body? Not too long, right?"

Father sighed at his son's questioning. There wasn't a time when he didn't need to know of something. After all, the jealous hated to be left out of anything, and he wasn't an exception. "When it's time, my son. Please be patient."

Instead of becoming annoyed at the brisk answer, Envy smirked and turned to the floor.

"Well, it was his fault the pipsqueak made that deal with us to get his brother's body back, anyway. He should've seen this coming."

_~ x ~_

**A/N: I hope I did okay. D: I know I put way too many breaks into this chapter, but I swear the rest of the chapters won't be like this one. Well I hope you enjoyed, a review or a favourite would be nice. :c**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hai, got chapter 2 here. I GOT ONE REVIEW. PROGRESS, LOSERS, THIS IS PROGRESS. 8D This is more of an Envy chapter, because he's actually quite important in the story (but that's okay because Enveh is my fave character in the whole world). So is Bradley/Wrath, so look forward to more of him. *cries* :C**

**I did begin this chapter yesterday, but I got blocked. My sister got me back into it, though. x'D Enjoy. :3**

_~ x ~_

_"I think it's a fair deal."_

_Edward snarled, glaring at the three homunculi ahead of him. Envy had his hands on his hips, that same sadistic grin spread across his face. Bradley, also known as Wrath, had a calm expression, observing the alchemist with a watchful eye. Their father was there too, also very calm. Alphonse's armoured body was spread out on the floor in front of them, mangled and torn into large pieces._

_"Come on pipsqueak, we don't have all day. Is it a deal or not?" Envy cocked his head to one side, the grin never leaving._

_Standing up, Ed moved his gaze over to his younger brother's metal body. "If I do accept, you promise to give him his body back?" He asked, looking almost hopeful._  
_Envy raised a slender finger and ran it in an 'x' shape over his chest._

_"Cross our hearts."_

_"Then... alright." Ed watched as Father moved forward and placed a hand on Al's armour, red and white sparks crackling in the air. Envy was laughing and Wrath was even smiling to himself as the room turned white..._

_Then completely black._

* * *

**"No! I've changed my mind!"**

Ed shot up in a panic. His bed sheets were damp and his body was drenched in a cold sweat. He sighed. Just a nightmare. Growling, he got up and hurriedly changed. It was probably the stuff Alphonse fed him the night before. What was it now... fried milk? Something like that. Next time he wouldn't touch anything Al made without being sure of what was in it.

Grumbling curses to himself, he slipped on his uniform and hurried downstairs, to see Alphonse holding his head in his hands. "Hey Al, you alright? Don't tell me you still don't feel well?" Ed asked nervously.

His brother quickly lifted his head. "Oh no, I'm getting better. Just a headache, that's all."

Quickly changing the subject, Alphonse looked out of the window. "There's an orphanage opening up down the street; I've thought of going over there and giving them a hand with getting everything into place. You know, all the furniture and the rooms sorted?"

"Sure, you going to work there all day?"

"Probably."

Ed saw that his breakfast was already made, this time just a simple boiled egg and orange juice. He sat down and ate it quickly and barely had time to down the orange juice before he heard a car horn blare from outside. Sighing, he turned to his brother, shoulders slumped. "That's the Colonel."

"He's a General, now,"

"Whatever! He's here to pick me up, and he's way earlier than usual. Al, I've got to go, are you sure you'll be alright? Do you want me to stay home and look after you until you're feeling better? Because I can if I just tell them—" Ed's words were cut off when Al waved a hand at him and laughed.

"Oh, don't be silly. I'm not a child anymore, so off you go." When Ed continued to stare at him, Alphonse got up and hurried him out of the door. "Tell the General I said hi!"

Roy waved to Ed as he got into the car. Before he even got his seatbelt on, Havoc stepped on the pedals furiously and the car dashed forward without any warning. Ed was almost thrown off his seat as he struggled to maintain his balance. Once his seatbelt was in place, Ed blew his hair away from his eyes and placed a hand on the driver's seat.

"Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing? You'll get us killed with that kind of driving!" He snapped. Havoc kept his eyes firmly on the road, letting Roy speak for him.

"I apologise for the early start, Fullmetal, but there was a recent murder. One of our guards was killed whilst returning from work, last night in fact." He said solemnly. Ed sat back down in his seat and looked at the General in surprise. _A murder?_ He thought._ But who? Was it another killer like the Slicer or Barry the Chopper from Death Row? Or possibly one of the homunculi? Or someone else...?_

He ran the thoughts through his head over and over. He remembered that the homunculi threatened to kill anyone in their way, be it researching their plans in the safety of the military walls or outside in the open, dangerously close to the underground tunnels that led to their base. That was what happened to Hughes, though nobody spoke of it that often, and especially not in front of Roy. Losing his best friend had been very painful, and he'd sworn to track down the murderer until he finally got his hands on him.

Shaking his head of the bad memories, Ed turned to his superior officer. "Where was he when he died?"

Roy gave him a look before recalling the events of last night. Seconds later, he turned back to him. "I'm not too sure, but it was on his way home, so we know that much. He lives near Central's centre, so perhaps it has something to do with that?"

Edward turned away and propped his head up with his hand. The homunculi lived far beneath Central... maybe the guard had researched into that, just like Hughes?

* * *

The HQ was more of a chaos that Ed had imagined. The receptionist didn't even blink at him when he arrived, instead typing away at her computer, her eyes glued to the screen. The soldiers were all busy themselves, barely making any contact with each other. Ed understood things were going to be complicated, but this was a little extreme. Roy immediately went over to the Führer's office while Havoc and Riza ran off to take care of their own jobs.

That left Ed awkwardly standing in the middle of the corridor with everyone else busily running around. Sighing, he decided to visit Bradley and ask what was going on.

Unfortunately for him, Bradley refused to talk until he had his tea. So Ed had to walk all the way back to the kitchen and brew some up for him and Roy. He saw Riza on his way over, but she didn't do so much as glance at him. It seemed like the murder had really freaked people out, Ed thought. Had there been more than Roy had told him? Or perhaps he just wasn't telling him any important details?

Scowling, he rudely slammed the door open and set the tray down roughly. Bradley didn't seem to notice as he picked up a cup and thanked him. Roy, however, did notice and watched Ed as he slumped in one of the chairs. He'd also forgotten to pour the tea as well, so Roy and the Führer did it themselves. After a tense silence, Ed finally drew a breath and opened his mouth to speak.

"Sir Bradley, everyone seems to be a bit hectic today about the murder committed last night... would you mind telling me what's going on?" He turned over to Bradley, the frustration still not leaving his face.

"Did General Mustang not tell you there was more than one?" Bradley replied calmly, not taking his eyes away from the floor. "There were several more in the middle of the night, and some this morning. Perhaps the message didn't get through?"

Roy blushed sheepishly. "Oh, forgive me sir, I didn't know."

Ed snorted and took his own cup of tea he had brought for himself. He didn't really drink it that often, but today he did to be polite. The air was dead as they drank, the only noises present were the quiet tinkle of the teacups being placed down. Ed was still in a bit of a cranky mood from earlier so Roy didn't say a word to him, and of course Bradley didn't really have anything else to say.

"Have we any clues on who the suspect is, sir?" Roy asked. Bradley shook his head.

"Not yet, but someone said that they saw a man around the age of 16 to 18 walking away from the murder this morning." He said solemnly Roy held his chin in his palm and thought. It could have definitely been one of the homunculi, though he had yet to see most of them. He had already met Lust once, though she had escaped from him, and he had seen Gluttony. He had yet to see Greed, Envy, Sloth, Wrath and Pride. So it could have been either of those five.

"Now then, you two," Bradley set his empty teacup down and stood up. "I have a lot of work to do this morning, sorting out the files of the murder victims. Please carry on as normal."

Ed quickly downed the rest of his tea and left after saluting. Roy did the same, though caught up with his colleague before he had the chance to run off. "Fullmetal, do you want to look into the murders with me?" He asked.

"Maybe after I finished my work. I've got to take care of all the documents you were to lazy to finish off!" Ed said with an irritated growl. Roy laughed before seeing him off, heading towards his office. He was in no rush, he had his own infinite pile of papers to see to. His good mood suddenly vanished at the thought of it. Being at the rank of General was much harder than he'd thought it would be. Of course he knew it was nothing easy, but this was just ridiculous.

* * *

Envy licked a drop of blood off his fingers as he was waiting in the basement of the military HQ. As enjoyable killing could be, it was annoying when the blood splattered everywhere. Humans were just _so messy_ to deal with. Even if he did cut them into two clean halves, their blood would gush out in less than a second. Not to mention that they would stain his clothes. Envy could shapeshift it away, but he hated to do that because it wasted his Philosopher's stone's energy, and Father had told him not to use it on minor things such as preening.

Now he was stuck in the military's basement waiting for Wrath. The blood on his clothes was starting to turn cold and he really didn't like anything cold. Shivering, he wrapped his arms around his sides and tapped his foot impatiently.

"Envy, you killed far too many people than planned," Came the voice he was waiting for. Looking up, Envy saw Wrath was already down on his level. _The old man can move fast_, He thought. "Just what did you think you were doing?"

The older homunculus sulked childishly, his long hair shielding his right eye. "I did what you asked."

Wrath frowned and shook his head with a sigh, saying, "I asked you to kill off two or three, not six. People are getting suspicious, thanks to your sadism." Turning away while not looking his brother in his violet eyes, he opened his mouth to speak again. "Why do you kill so many, anyway? Isn't it pointless?"

Envy stared at him before he snickered, "It's fun, that's why."

_Was that a flicker in his eye...?_ Wrath thought, squinting slightly. _No, I must be imagining it._

Wrath knew very well that Envy enjoyed killing, though he always had a strange look on his face when he did it. He and his siblings knew Envy was jealous of something, but they never knew what exactly he was jealous of. Had it something to do with his sadism, or did he merely enjoy killing for the sake of it? Wrath barely knew Envy, besides from exchanging news and hearing his constant screaming from one end of their base.

_'Gluttony, stop trying to eat my arm!'_

_'Why can't I go outside and kill something? Come on, Lust, just one human! Please?'_

_'Shut the hell up and screw off!'_

It was all so ridiculous. Some of Wrath's siblings, namely Gluttony and Sloth, were a little dim, but Envy was perhaps unstable on a different level. Wrath had never met Greed, due to him running away 40 years prior, but Lust had told him he was very much like a rebellious teenager. He and Envy would constantly argue, though Greed wasn't a sadist and actually got on well with humans if necessary.

"Still, you're too reckless, please be careful in the future, or Father will know about it." Wrath snapped out of his thoughts and turned to Envy again. His brother scowled and angrily pushed past him, taking the form of his blond-haired Second Lieutenant disguise and leaving the basement.

* * *

Now in the form of a crow, Envy glided on the cool air outside. He'd was taking a breather from his usual activities, hoping to relax his muscles and his mind. It wasn't fair; Wrath got to run a whole damn country and he was even younger than him, yet he still got to boss him around as much as he pleased. Envy swore that Father picked out favourites among his children, Wrath quite clearly taking the prize as his 'perfect son'.

He let those two do whatever they wanted. When Envy had been first born, he'd been forbidden from going outside for months and even when he'd officially started going on missions with Lust, he wasn't allowed to go outside on his own. Even now, Father still didn't trust him that much.

Cawing, he felt the wind whistle through his ragged black feathers. Considering his weight, Envy had a tough time flying but enjoyed it. Now he just wished he had someone to pick on. His older siblings had much more power over him and Sloth and Gluttony were too stupid to understand his insults. If only the Fullmetal pipsqueak was around here...

Hang on, what was that? In one of the military's windows? Ah yes, he saw the blond hair of the little alchemist as he sorted through countless piles of paper. Envy smirked unnaturally with his beak and descended silently and perched on the windowsill, red electricity crackling around his body as he switched back to his preferred humanoid form.

Ink splattered across the pages as Edward dropped his pen. Finally finishing off his work, he folded the papers he'd been signing into a neat pile and slid them into the draw below him. Straightening out his collar, he got up from behind his desk and turned to leave. Abruptly, the window flew open and the cold night air rushed in. Ed whipped around and saw Envy sitting on the windowsill, the usual smug grin on his mug. Crossing his legs, he gave Edward a wave.

"Get lost!" The blond alchemist snapped, hurriedly turning to open the door.

"Aw, come on pipsqueak, no need to be so harsh. I haven't done anything yet." Envy tutted, his smirk only growing wider.

Edward fumbled to find the keys for the door, trying to avoid the homunculus's violet gaze. "I don't want to stay and let you. And stop calling me a pipsqueak."

"Oh, right. You need to go back to your precious little brother," Envy looked disappointed, but his usual crazed grin reappeared. "But who knows how much longer you can stay with him?"

Edward stopped, now glaring Envy in the eyes, his face distorting with sudden fury. "And just what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"_Huuuh?_" Envy drawled, suddenly looking excited. His legs uncrossed and he leaned in closer, his eyes narrowing and his smirk widening all the more. "You really don't have any idea what I'm talking about, do you, pipsqueak? You surprise me."

"Explain yourself, Envy!"

Looking out of the window and peering at one of the towering clocks nearby, Envy stood up and turned around to leave, the moon leaving his hair shining. "Sorry I can't stay longer, little alchemist. Stay out of trouble, it was an equivalent exchange. Next time." He gave another wave before leaping off the windowsill. Edward hurried to the edge and peered down, only for the green-haired homunculus to have vanished completely. Just what did he mean, _'how much longer you could stay with him'_? That bastard was up to something. Was he planning on killing Alphonse?

Grabbing his things and opening the door, Edward ran out of the room and out of the HQ, nodding a goodbye to the secretary. Once he got outside, he scanned the area. Envy wasn't anywhere in sight, and nowhere near inside earshot. Turning on his heel, he ran home to see if Al was alright. He doubted Envy would have hurt him, but his words were scary.

It was an equivalent exchange... they had to keep their promise.

After all, that was how alchemy worked.

Right?

_~ x ~_

**A/N: Oh my god this chapter was so annoying to write. It's a bit shorter than I would've liked, but yeah. So far I'm not really keen on my writing... I honestly can write better than this it's just this is a slow part to the story. During the later chapters, I swear it will get good. 8D**

**Reviewing would be nice, please. PLEASE. D:**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Back again, the very few people that read. :D Chapter 3~ Yippee. I need to respond to a review and that's about it for this one. C:**

**Response to JJNation:~ Haaii! 8D Thanks so much for your reviews. Your second one was kind of long so I'm going to respond to this one here. I am SOO FRICKING GLAD YOU LIKE THIS. Honestly I was psyched. And yeah, fried milk is a Chinese dish, kind of looks like mini potatoes. :I It was mentioned in the game and Ed ate it without knowing, until Al told him. He was a bit annoyed but he said it didn't taste all that bad. And I hope your computer screen makes it to the end of this story. x'D Thanks again! C:**

_~ x ~_

When Ed arrived home, he saw that Alphonse was still perfectly unharmed, though he was nowhere to be found when he unlocked the door to their apartment.

"...Al?" Ed called, poking his head around each room. He heard no reply, then decided to check upstairs. His and Al's room were empty, though the bathroom door was locked. Knocking on it, Ed called again. "Al, you in there?"

A few muffled thumps were heard inside as Alphonse unlocked the door and smiled, though his right hand was bandaged. Frowning, Ed observed it. Blood was starting to spot the white cloth from underneath, and he couldn't help but worry.

"What happened to your hand? Are you alright?" He asked. Al laughed.

"Oh don't worry about it, I accidentally dropped a heavy box on it while I was at the orphanage." He told him cheerfully.

Ed sighed and looked at his brother with concern. "Is it serious?"

Al laughed again. "Brother, this sort of thing will heal in a couple of days. Please don't be worried."

The two didn't say much as Alphonse prepared dinner, so Ed sat at the table and stared at the clock on the wall. Peeking over Al's shoulder, he saw that he was just making rice this time, which was fine because he wasn't all that hungry after today. The documents had tired him out, and of course the meeting with Envy had really muddled his mind up. He just hoped that his brother would be fine, because he truly meant the world to him. He'd even give up his two remaining limbs if it meant the price was equivalent to saving his life. He did have a great automail mechanic, after all.

Once Al had set their meals down, he opened his mouth to start speaking right away, a big difference to the silence earlier. "Oh, Brother! I had such a great time at the orphanage today! A few other women and I brought the donations in, and the orphans were so happy! There was a lot of furniture and boxes to move around, but we all did it in the end. Even the children helped!"

It made Ed glad to hear his brother sound so cheerful, even though he wasn't in the best condition at the moment. He kept getting into a lot of strange accidents lately, and he had many headaches and pains in his arms and back. Ed was persistent on him seeing a doctor, but Al had refused and dismissed the idea almost as soon as he had heard it.

Ed listened to Alphonse talk all the way through dinner; nodding and mumbling after every pause. It wasn't long before they had both finished and cleared their plates away. The moon shone through the half-closed curtains and illuminated the cutlery. Realising how late it was, Ed thought he'd better get to bed.

"Al, see you up there, alright?" He said, sluggishly moving up the stairs. Al waved to him before turning away. He always liked to stay up another ten minutes at the least to finish clearing away properly, and of course to make sure that his brother actually went to bed.

Stripping of his heavy uniform and slipping into lighter, more comfortable pyjamas, Ed buried his head under the covers of his bed and sighed. It was far too hot in the room, probably because of the summer heat outside. He wriggled around and struggled to find a position where he could relax. He ended up ruffling the covers so that they hung over the bed, so he settled with sleeping outside of them.

* * *

When Ed woke up, he instantly let out a stream of coughs. His forehead was wet, much like it was yesterday morning. Lifting a hand to his face, his hand came in contact with boiling skin. He felt disgustingly awful.

Groaning, he stumbled out of his bed and grabbed his uniform, which was hanging up on the chair beside his dresser. He groggily slipped it on, not bothering to button it up until he got downstairs. Afterwards he went into the bathroom to see that his cheeks were a rosy colour. He denied that he had a cold, he only a little ill. It was the middle of summer, and at night the nights were almost as warm as it was during the day. It was probably the heat that made him ill, he thought.

Once he made his way downstairs, he noticed that Alphonse was on his way up to wake him. He peered at Ed's face in surprise.

"Brother, you don't look well." He said, frowning.

"It was probably the heat," Ed shot back in a hurry, though coughed afterwards. Alphonse wasn't too sure, and ran to fetch a thermometer. He held it in front of Ed's face.

"Put this under your tongue."

Ed complained but did as he was told. A minute later, after the thermometer let out a '_beep_', Al checked the reading and sighed. "You're 38°C, Brother. I think you should stay home today." Al set the thermometer down on the table and looked at the clock. It was still a little early.

"What? No way. A little cold isn't going to stop me from working," Ed scoffed and waved his hand. "I swear it isn't anything serious."

_Great_, Ed thought to himself, grumbling. _Now we're both not feeling well_. Al let out another sigh and opened the cupboards, rummaging around for supplies to make their breakfast. Ed sat down at the table, not really looking that happy, though he supposed colds never brought any joy to anyone. Cracking a couple of eggs open and placing them in a saucepan, Al glanced back at Ed. He was looking through the glass door, probably watching for the General, still coughing.

Breakfast was cooked and eaten in less than five minutes. Ed grabbed his military jacked and headed out of the door after saying his goodbyes and trudged slowly across the path and opened the gate to their garden. Hearing shuffled footsteps behind him, he saw that Al had followed him out.

"I'm going to see you off," Al grinned.

Ed blinked. "See me off? Really Al, you don't have to worry."

"If you won't let me, I won't let you go to work!" Alphonse folded his arms and pretended to scowl. Ed stared before smiling and let him tag along. They walked down the street in silence, Al quickly ringing Roy through a phone booth nearby to tell him that there was no need to collect them; they were walking themselves. They did not technically live close to the military HQ, but it wasn't too far of a walk. They went side by side, chatting about how Ed's job was getting on and what kind of documents he was sorting out, and what Al was going to be doing in the orphanage today. They weren't particularly interesting subjects but they both enjoyed the chat that they rarely had, due to Ed's job being very time consuming, so they barely had time to chat in the night before it was late. Their mornings were short as well, so they made the most out of their walk as they possibly could.

Al finally switched the topic before they reached the HQ. "You know, we haven't done this in a long time," He mentioned, though upon seeing his brother's sad face he started panicking. "Oh, not that I'm lonely or anything!"

"Then how about if you're free this weekend, we could go out together for the day?" Ed suggested with a smile.

"But wait until you're well again!" Al reminded him, jabbing his arm with his elbow. "We don't want to make your cold worse.

They were loudly talking before Riza noticed them on her guard duty. Wandering over, she threw them a wave. "Hello Colonel. Alphonse, what are you doing here?"

"Brother's got a cold, so I walked him over. Can you keep an eye on him today, Miss Hawkeye?" Al shouted over the long distance. Riza made her way over quickly and observed Ed's flushed cheeks and hot, pale skin. His eyes were dark from the disturbed sleep he had and his shoulders slumped with tiredness. He did not look like the working material.

"He looks pretty bad, but sure, I'll make sure he keeps care of himself." Riza saluted and Al laughed, giving them a wave before walking off back to their apartment. Riza put a hand on Ed's back and led him into the building. He was coughing and did not look well at all, but he was too stubborn to go home and rest. She sighed to herself. Same old Ed.

* * *

"Oh, our Secretary isn't looking so lively today, now is he?" Roy jeered as Ed stumbled forwards with the usual tray of teacups and a teapot. Clumsily letting the tea spill over the edges, Ed snarled at his superior officer.

"Hey, it's none of your business... _uugh_..." Ed fell forwards dizzily, though Roy caught him before he hit the ground.

"Be careful, Fullmetal!" He scolded, pushing the blond alchemist up and taking the tray away from him himself. "I'm worried you might break the china."

Ed gave a fake laugh and immediately turned away scowling. "I'm fine, thanks for asking."

Bradley, who wasn't paying any attention to Ed and Roy's squabbling, looked up and took a cup from the tray Roy set down on the table. "Colonel Elric, if you're not feeling well, perhaps you should stay at home and rest. There's absolutely no need to force yourself, you know."

"Oh no, sir, I'm fine. Please enjoy the tea." Ed said hurriedly, waving a hand and smiling weakly.

"The tea's cold,"

"What?"

"The tea's cold, Fullmetal." Roy repeated, unimpressed.

"No, it can't be..." Ed staggered over and placed a finger on one of the cups. The china was freezing instead of the usual warm temperature. Ed frowned back at Roy's mutual expression and turned around, sitting back down in his own seat, shrugging as he did so. "My bad."

Roy and Bradley forcefully drank their cold beverages and dismissed Ed for the time being. He walked sluggishly out of the office and went back to the break room, instantly falling down and curling up into a ball on one of the soft sofas. He'd begin working in a minute, he just had to rest his eyes for a while.

_._

_._

_"Should we wake him?"_

_"I think we should leave him..."_

"Mom... Alphonse..."

_"Let him sleep, he's not well after all."_

Ed stirred, his fingers twitching. He noticed that his pyjamas were unusually heavy and uncomfortable around his skin and he was very close to a wall. Cracking open a golden eye, he saw the orange fabric of a sofa. Shooting up, he turned and saw Bradley and Fuery watching him. He began sweating once he realised he'd been sleeping all day without working. Why hadn't anyone awoken him?

"Did you sleep well?" Bradley asked with a smile.

Ed panicked. "Oh, I'm sorry sir! I just had to rest my eyes for a second and—"

Bradley held up a hand and chuckled, dismissing the alchemist's words. "Don't worry about it, General Mustang took care of your documents." After his words, Ed swore he heard a loud groan drone through the hallways outside. Laughing weakly, he quickly scrambled to his feet and stood up straight, even though he was a little dizzy from his headache. Bradley looked closely at Ed's still pale face. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, a little better now." Was his reply.

"You should head home now, it's getting a little late." Bradley told him. Not in the mood to argue, Ed saluted and turned to leave, now hearing Roy's crying much more clearly. Smirking in amusement, he quickly walked out of the building. The sun was close to setting and illuminated his eyes to a slight orange, and warmed his skin.

He hadn't gotten far before a tall man, perhaps around his age, bumped into him quite suddenly.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" Ed snapped, brushing his shoulder off. The stranger remained silent, his eyes shadowed out. Before Ed got a chance to look at him more closely, he disappeared. Squinting, Ed watch the stranger hurry off into the distance. "Strange, he looked familiar..."

"Damn, that was way too close!" The stranger growled to himself, ducking behind a wall. Red sparks sparked around his body before a flash of white light changed his form. Envy shivered. "It was a good thing he never looked too closely."

Envy made sure he was in perfect condition before padding forwards on light feet around the huge military base. It was a _damn_ good thing that Ed hadn't seen him closely. Father had asked this mission to be completely secret, and no one, especially Edward, was to find out about it. It just happened that Envy had forgotten to switch out of the form he had assumed while finishing off the recent murder of one of the military's guards. If Ed had seen him, he'd have a lot of explaining to do.

_Maybe taking the form of Ed's younger brother hadn't been such a good idea..._

* * *

When Edward arrived home, he saw that Alphonse wasn't home. He checked all the rooms again, but this time he wasn't anywhere in sight. Ed wondered if that murderer had reached him...

"Don't be stupid, Ed," He laughed. "Al's more than great at fighting."

He dismissed his ideas as ridiculous, but he still was a little worried.

Around an hour later, Al returned, though he was clutching his left shoulder and Ed could clearly see blood seeping through. Ed peered at it closely. "Hey Al, what happened this time?"

"I tripped and fell, Brother," He replied simply. Ed frowned before sitting his younger brother down on one of the kitchen chairs. He felt in the cupboard beneath the sink and pulled out a bucket and started to fill it with warm water. Al cocked his head in confusion. "What are you doing?"

"You said you fell, right? I'll clean your wound out." Ed replied calmly, not turning around. He reached for a cloth and disinfectant and set them beside Al's legs. Ed pointed to his bloody sleeve. "Could you take off your jacket?"

Nodding, Al did as he was told. He wasn't lying, he really had tripped and fallen over, but his body was so fragile it had caused much more of a wound than it normally would have. The fall was so light that there shouldn't have been a wound at all, just a bruise, but now his skin would tear and bleed at anything.

As Ed started to clean the wound by dabbing it with the damp cloth, Al's head started to cloud. He was being silly, Ed wasn't even putting pressure on his cut. However, a lot of pain was going through his arm and now was affecting his head. Blinking, he saw that his vision was starting to act up too. He saw white and black blotches across the clean kitchen and the room was spinning. Shaking his head, he looked down, but that only made him feel worse. His stomach churned and he felt bile rise to his throat. Ed seemed to notice his strange reactions and stopped cleaning.

"Al? Are you alright?" Came the muffled question that barely reached Al's ears.

"I don't feel well, Ed. I don't feel well at all." Before anything more could be said, Al felt his mind turn completely black as his body clattered to the floor.

_"Alphonse!"_

_~ x ~_

**A/N: Muahahah, CLIFFHANGER. :D I'm sorry, Alphonse. o3o And I'm sorry for using Degrees Celcius, but that's what they use in Japan anyway. And this chapter is too short... D:**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I'm back. C: This chapter took a bit longer than usual... I just couldn't get my writing spirit. But it's here now, and I have to submit this quickly because I ate like 12 cookies today and I feel sick. :C I just gotta reply to one review and that's about it.**

**Reply to 'Cherry blossom': Hey! I'm glad you're enjoying my story. It makes me sooo glad. :'D Yeah, Pride!Ed fics are just the best. And about character death, that'd be telling. It's a surprise. I will definitely throw in my own scenes here and there, and take some out of the game plotline to make it more interesting and not drag on about the same thing over and over. And no, I can't read or speak Chinese... I used a translation website, so I knew what to press and I knew what was going on. x'D I hope you enjoy the rest of the story!**

_~ x ~_

Al felt his head pound as he slipped back in consciousness. His vision was blurred, and his body shivered. He couldn't make sense of his surroundings; he had absolutely no idea where he was. He barely even remembered what had happened to him before he felt his world turn dark and fade away. Stirring, he tried to focus on where the pain was coming from. His left shoulder was throbbing viciously, and he could faintly smell the sickly metallic scent of blood. Overall, his whole body felt sore, but his arm was almost killing him. He blinked back the tears of pain in his eyes and managed to look to his right. He saw his and his brother's living room, everything in place though there was a bucket of soapy water near him. Ed's military jacket lay crumpled on the floor, having fallen off one of the kitchen chairs nearby. Al's head snapped around when he heard the sound of coughing next to him.

Ed was sitting on the arm of the sofa, his head buried in his hands. On his fingers were drops of blood and the cloth on his lap was mottled with the stuff, too. His eyes were squeezed shut, probably from tiredness. Al remembered he had a cold since he had woken up, and had treated his wounds before he'd passed out.

Groaning, Al tried to move his lips to make a sound. "Brother..."

Ed's head jerked up suddenly, and he immediately rushed over to his brother's side. "Al! Are you feeling alright?" He asked, the words pouring out of his mouth all at once. Al had some difficulty hearing though he nodded and smiled.

"Yes, I'm fine. I think I was just a little tired..." He mumbled, trying to get up, before Ed pushed him back down again.

"You passed out! I can't just dismiss that as being tired, Al!" He said sternly, his eyebrows furrowing. Al hadn't seen him this serious in a long time; but he was just being concerned. Moreover when he was concerned, he got stubborn. Sighing, Al turned his eyes to the ceiling and stared at it, without replying at all. He knew he wasn't well, but if he let Ed know then he'd start blaming himself for everything. He'd blame himself about how he didn't get Al's soul attached to his body properly, or how he'd screwed up on his alchemy, or whatever. He might even storm out of the building and hunt down the homunculi for hurting Al so badly in the first place. Al didn't blame him for being worried or even angry, but he really didn't want him to blame himself.

The two brothers remained in silence for at least five minutes. Ed stared at Al's emotionless face, and Al stared at the ceiling. The only noises in the room was the clock ticking on the wall. Having enough, Ed stood up and sighed. "Well, alright then. I'll take it you were just tired, and hey, you said you had a headache earlier, right?" He said, suddenly grinning. Al perked up and looked at him in surprise.

"Oh, yeah," He replied awkwardly, before returning the smile. "Please don't worry about it, I'm fine."

"Great!" Ed picked up the bucket of soapy water and poured it down the sink, throwing the cloth by the side to clean later. He quickly washed his hands to rid of the blood and turned to the cupboards. "I'll make dinner, if you want."

Al looked at him uncertainly. Ed never cooked. He was terrible at it, and he hated doing it as much as he couldn't do it. Now, he was going through all the food, picking out whatever he thought looked interesting and placed them all on the kitchen table. Al watched him in amusement as he struggled to read the recipe book he had just pulled out, cursing under his breath. Getting up shakily, Al took the book from his hands and smiled.

"Why don't I do it?"

Ed pouted. "I was doing just fine."

"You can't even read the recipe book right, Brother. You're just not cut out for cooking." Al laughed at Ed's childish behaviour, before looking away in thought. "By the way, how long was I out?"

"About two hours. I finished off cleaning your wound after I couldn't wake you up." Ed replied. Looking at his arm, Al saw that it was cleaned and dressed (rather messily) in white bandages. It still stung and throbbed a little, but Al guessed it would go away before he went to sleep. Perhaps food would ease the pain somewhat.

"Oh, thanks for that, Brother." He smiled. "Well, I'll get dinner start. You can do whatever you want until then."

Shortly after thinking, Ed left the kitchen and went up to his bedroom. It was a mess from earlier this morning from when he was sick, though Alphonse usually cleaned it for him, since he had to go to work almost as soon as he got up and had breakfast. He had refused to wake up earlier, and he wasn't much of a morning person either. Al didn't mind cleaning up, because he didn't really have a hobby to keep him occupied. After he had gotten his body back, he had nothing else to do except look after the house and help out at the orphanage down the street. It got pretty boring, so he tried to make everything spotless. Though lately, since he had had those mysterious incidents, he stopped cleaning and the house was looking a bit of a wreck. Ed's bed hadn't been made in a while now, and alchemy books littered his dresser, the windowsill and the floor.

In all his honesty, the state of the house brought Edward down a little. He tried to clean up a little himself, but work and overtime took so much of his own time he could only get home, eat dinner, sleep, and then eat breakfast. The hours between those were hours spent at the military. On the weekends, he usually went out places to take a breather, and Al went out to the market. This weekend, he'd asked his brother if he was free for a day out together, so maybe he could clean up the place after they returned home.

Groaning as he bent over, Ed picked up the alchemy textbooks and gathered them up into a messy pile before attempting to shove them into a shelf. The books stuck out unevenly and threatened to fall out and scatter the floor even worse than it was, so Ed pushed them in further. He sighed and sat down on his bed, looking out of the window. It had turned much darker outside since Al had first passed out. The sky was clouded over, so no stars were visible. There are probably no stars even out yet, Ed thought. They're never out this early during the summer.

Ed sat thinking to himself for around ten minutes before deciding to get up and see how Al was doing. As he walked past the window, he thought he saw a flash of blue light. Stopping and squinting through the glass, he saw that he hadn't been hallucinating. There were plenty of blue lights outside, all in the garden. Next, he swore he saw a flash of blond hair. Was that Al? Perhaps he had taken a break from cooking for a few minutes. Ed stepped down the stairs, two steps at a time, and opened the front door. Al was indeed outside, squatted down and seemed to be staring at something; the blue lights from earlier. They looked a bit like flowers. Ed cocked his head to one side as he walked forward to join his brother.

"Look, Brother," Al said cheerfully, turning around. "There's firefly grass in our garden!"

"Firefly grass? What's that?" Ed asked, kneeling down and looking at the strange, neon blue flowers.

"A type of plant that only blooms at night, and their petals glow like fireflies." Al explained, picking one out of the ground and held it to his chest, closing his eyes as he did so. "There's a legend that says if you hold one close to you and pray while it's in bloom, the person you're thinking of while be able to hear your thoughts, no matter how far away they are."

Ed looked at Al, who was still smiling and holding the flower tightly against him. He looked content, though Ed could tell he was still feeling ill. "You actually believe in that kind of thing?" He asked, though his voice was quiet, and more of a statement.

"It's just a legend... but Brother, even if we don't have this flower, and we're separated somehow, you'll still be able to hear my thoughts, right?" Al asked, his eyes remaining closed and the flower next to his chest. He sounded hopeful, almost.

"Yes... of course I will."

* * *

Roy's head fell to the table with a '_thunk_' as he finally shoved the extra paperwork away from him. He'd been working until no one else was left in the building, having to take care of Edward's documents while the little bastard had decided to doze off peacefully instead of doing them himself. The paperwork had almost driven him to tears, and his wrist felt like spaghetti. It had gotten so bad he'd even attempted to write with his left hand, but the pen kept going off the page. He'd used up two pens already, and there was countless piles of paper behind him, on his desk, and on the shelves. He'd probably cry in the corner of his house as soon as he actually got home.

Eventually, after letting his numb hand rest for a few minutes, Roy stood up and reached for his military jacket, which was hanging up on a hook nearby. Slipping it on quickly, he left his office and headed for the front door. He waved a goodbye to the secretary who did the night shifts, and left. The air was somewhat cool, and calmed him down from being in the hot building all day.

It wasn't long before he had reached his own apartment and collapsed onto the living room sofa and let out a loud groan. His hair was instantly ruffled, but he was home and he didn't care. He lay there for a while before finally getting up and heading upstairs. While he changed into his pyjamas and brushed his teeth, he thought about the recent murders.

He really did suspect the homunculi, but Riza had told him that she'd had several eye-witness reports, and she was busy working out if it resembled anyone, so he'd have to wait until tomorrow. It wasn't long before he was in bed and fast asleep, just too exhausted to think anymore.

Meanwhile, only across the road from Roy's apartment, Lust had watched him from beside a telephone booth. She had been wearing a coat to hide her Ouroboros tattoo (and to keep the now colder air out). Narrowing red-purple eyes, she turned around and began walking away. The General was suspecting them, she was sure of it. Of course, he didn't say a word, but she could see it on his face. He'd been thinking way too much for it being normal, and had kept a constant eye out. Today he had been particularly busy, so it was a little more difficult to read his expressions, and that really wasn't her idea of spending her evening, but they were Father's orders. She couldn't argue against him; no one really could.

Lust had been bored lately, but she couldn't really commit the murders, because they already had a plan sorted for that, and it had worked fine. Well, that's what Wrath had told her anyway, besides from some sloppy work from their green-haired brother. She scoffed to herself. Envy was all talk but no common sense. She swore all that went through his mind was, _kill, kill, and kill_. She could taunt him all she liked; he couldn't do anything to her. He knew his place.

However, it was about time that Fullmetal's brother had been framed, because that would surely make their plan more a little more quickly. She was patient, but it was going somewhat slow recently, and that was annoying. All she could do now was wait a bit longer.

* * *

When Edward woke up, he expected to start coughing and his throat to be stinging. He felt perfectly fine, for some reason. Had it been Al's cooking? Most likely; he knew what he was doing when it came to stuff like that. Today was Friday, so it was his last day before the weekend. He quickly got dressed, now feeling much less sluggish than yesterday. The only thing he wanted to know was how Al was feeling.

"Hey Al, you awake yet?" He called. He heard a shout from the kitchen as soon as he had called.

"Yes! Breakfast is almost ready!"

Well, he sounded all right. Shrugging, Ed went downstairs and sat down at the table, his hair still loose. He was still a little tired; the cold hadn't gone away yet. He didn't deny he was feeling better than he was, but his throat was a bit scratchy every now and again. As he pondered on his thoughts, Al placed a plate in front of him. Ed peered down at it. "Woah, Al, that's a big breakfast."

Ed wasn't exaggerating; it was bigger than what he usually had. There were two fried eggs, ham, mushrooms and a tangerine at the side. The milk sat by his plate, instantly being ignored. Al put his hands on his hips and smiled.

"Yep, it's a formula for your flu." He said proudly. It looked like he'd put a lot of effort into it. Ed grinned and thanked him, before quickly inhaling the food. He was hungry, he'd skipped lunch yesterday.

In two minutes, he'd scoffed the lot, and poured the milk down the sink when Al wasn't looking. Ed grabbed his military jacket before running out of the door. He noticed Al had followed him out, carrying a hair band.

"Don't forget to tie your hair back." He reminded. Ed pulled his hair into an untidy ponytail and gave his brother a quick wave.

"Thanks!" He said before quickly running down the street. Havoc had recently phoned and told him he was too busy to collect him now, so he'd have to walk. Or rather, run. They didn't exactly live close to the military HQ, annoyingly. When he arrived, he was out of breath and couldn't stand up properly.

The first thing he saw was Riza on her guard duty outside of the front gate. She was shuffling through a pile of papers and looked somewhat pale. Ed walked up to her, giving her a greeting and pulling on his scruffy ponytail. She glanced up at him and handed him the file she had clutched in her hands. "Colonel, you'd better take a look at this." She said solemnly. Ed took the file uncertainly and looked over it. Almost instantly, his eyebrows furrowed and his jaw tightened furiously.

"What the hell is _this_?" He yelled, waving the file in front of Riza's face. "This can't be right!"

"Please calm down—" Riza started, but Ed cut her off.

"Al can't be the murderer! You must have gotten it wrong!" He started to throw a tantrum, almost at the verge of stamping his foot like a child. "What are you even thinking?"

Riza put her hands on his shoulders and looked sternly at him. "Colonel, stop that! We never said that Alphonse was the murderer. He's just a suspect for now."

Ed pulled himself away from her grip angrily, putting a hand on his hip. "Do you even have proof?"

"Not direct evidence, but we have eye-witness reports of someone walking away from the scenes, and their physical appearance is identical to Alphonse's."

"That can't be right!" Ed screamed, turning away and storming off into the building. "I'm going to see the Colonel!"

"He's a General now, sir,"

"_Whatever!_"

* * *

Roy was sitting in his office meanwhile, dark circles under his eyes, obviously needing more sleep than he had received last night. His face looked tired too, and his hair was scruffy as well as his uniform. A pile of untouched fresh documents was next to him, though he wasn't going to touch them for a while.

He was snapped awake when Ed slammed the doors open and marched up to his desk, throwing a file in front of him. "Explain this."

Roy looked at it for a second. "Oh yeah, I thought you'd might say something about that," He crossed his legs and sighed. "Please don't be angry, I'm not even sure that Al's the murderer either. To be honest, I think it's one of the homunculi."

Ed's eyes widened in surprise. "A homunculus?"

The General nodded. "Yes, I know Alphonse would never do such a thing. The homunculi could have set this up, we don't know that. So just bear with the fact that Al's a suspect for the time being."

"Alright then, but sort this out quickly." The blond alchemist looked down at the floor, and let out his own sigh. Roy nodded and waved his hand.

"You still need to pour the tea, my dearest Fullmetal. The Führer is waiting in his own office, too. We weren't sure if you were going to be in today, so we didn't bother with getting tea. But if you're here now, you might as well fetch it."

Ed furiously exited the General's office moments later, attracting odd stares from the officers and guards nearby. When he reached the kitchen and started to pour the tea, he pulled on his hair in a rage, his ponytail coming loose in the process. "Why do I have to do such a stupid thing?"

_~ x ~_

**A/N: I'm tired as hell right now, so read and review while I'm sleeping. C:**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hai again muchachos. C: This chapter's a bit of a filler around the start... because it's way too early to start the action. x'D This chapter's a little shorter but it's kind of important.**

**Reply to JJNation: Hey there again. c: Just letting you know, 'scoff' and 'scarf' have the same meaning. I've never heard of the word 'scarf' as in to eat before; is it American? If so, then I don't need to change it because I'm writing this story in UK English. But 'scoff' is definitely right, I checked it. Thanks for the review, and everything about the suspicion of Al being the murderer will clear up eventually. And the firefly grass thing wasn't my idea... that was in the game too. x'D But I'm adding a little more to it later.**

_~ x ~_

"So, you memorised this whole place?"

Edward stared at the busy crowds around him while Al easily made his way through them, even shouting a '_hello_' over to a few people. Ed didn't know anyone here, but Al seemed to be rather popular. The two brothers were in the middle of the market at the end of their street, shopping for food. Al only noticed this morning when there'd been barely anything in the cupboards or fridge when he'd woken up to make breakfast. Normally, he'd go shopping on a Tuesday, when the food was a little cheaper, but he knew that they couldn't go three days without proper food. Ed would complain constantly. Saturdays were always busy, but they'd both agreed to go out somewhere for the weekend.

"Yep," Al said, as he waved to yet another stranger. "Since I'm the only one left to go out shopping."

They browsed a few more stalls, Al chatting casually with the merchants as they went by. Ed followed his brother around quietly, barely saying a word. It wasn't because he was shy, it was just that it was a little awkward for him not to know anybody. He was in work all the time, so he never really knew anyone outside of the military, and his friends of course.

Ed still didn't have the heart to tell Alphonse he was a suspect of the recent murders. How could he, anyway? He knew the military was dead wrong, even Roy suspected there was something up. Al would be heartbroken if he found out, and Ed couldn't stand seeing him like that.

He snapped out of his thoughts when someone bumped into him by accident. Ed realised he had accidentally zoned out and had stood still in the middle of the crowd while Al had wandered off on his own without knowing. Gritting his teeth, he squirmed though the huge cluster of people and struggled to see above their heads, as almost all of them were much taller. A couple of them swore at him for pushing past, which Ed ignored.

Practically gasping for breath, he reached a spot on the pavement which wasn't occupied. Al was still nowhere in sight, annoyingly.

"Really? That's great news!"

Ed's head jerked around to the sound of Al's voice. He was nearby; the loudness of his voice was obvious. Ed turned around to see his brother standing a few metres away, talking to two young children around the age of seven and five. They were rather poorly dressed, and had bags full of food in their arms. Ed wandered up to Al and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and smiled. "Oh, there are you are, Brother. Where did you go?"

"I got lost," Ed replied flatly, before looking at the two children Al was talking to. "These friends of yours?"

"Yeah, they're from the orphanage," Al explained, and turned to the two. "Alfie, Constance, this is my brother, Ed."

The boy, presumably the older one, gave Ed a cheerful wave while the girl hid behind the boy's back. Ed leaned forward and shook Alfie's hand, while Constance shyly crept out. Ed guessed they were both siblings, having the same black hair, blue eyes and face shape. Al seemed rather happy as he spoke again, "They just got adopted; their new parents are coming to pick them up later." He added.

"That's good to hear," Ed grinned. His grin faded as he noticed that Constance was staring in wonder at his automail arm. He'd forgotten to cover it up this morning. Normally, he'd always wear gloves with his military uniform, but since it was the weekend and he wore his normal clothes: a white jacket and shirt with jeans, he'd forgotten about covering up his automail. Normally he wouldn't want anyone staring, but Constance seemed to be interested. Ed hesitantly pulled his jacket sleeve back to give her a better view.

"Pretty cool, huh?" He said. Constance nodded and smiled. Ed turned back to Al and asked, "So, do we have everything we need?"

Al glanced down at the bags besides his feet and rummaged through them. "Yes, I think so."

Ed nodded as the waved a goodbye to Alfie and Constance, as the two hurried away back to the orphanage.

"Nice kids, aren't they?" Al mentioned.

Ed shifted the weight of the bags in his arms. "When did you meet them?"

"As soon as I went over to the orphanage. They were the most eager to help out, despite being a little shy at first. They're really talkative once you get to know them."

Nodding, Ed walked behind Al as he directed the way out of the crowds. As soon as they were out, they picked up their pace, hoping to get home quickly to rid the load in their arms. They didn't live far away, but the sky was starting to cloud, and bad weather would cause Ed's stumps to ache. It had been clear when they set out, but now it was a little colder and the air felt damper.

_Ed isn't showing any signs of feeling unwell, so we're all right for the moment_, Al thought. Moments later, the sky rumbled before rain spilled down. Alphonse sighed as he raised his arms over the open bags in his arms. Ed looked severely angry as his hair dampened and stuck to his face, something that he hated. Al had suggested he'd cut his hair to avoid something like that, but Ed had replied, '_I can't be bothered_'. So it was really his own fault.

"There's a shelter over there, want to wait until the rain's stopped?" Al suggested, prodding Ed's shoulder and pointing to a small building. Ed briskly nodded and the two headed towards it, their hair now soaked through already. When they arrived, there weren't any other people inside besides from a man around the age of 30 hanging around the back. Ed slumped into one of the seats and let out a long, dramatic sigh. Strangely, the other man in the back looked up and seemed to stare at them for a while, though he never said anything.

Al squinted as he saw something familiar about the stranger dressed in a blue trench coat and high boots. He wore a thin rain coat over his clothes and he had the hood pulled over his head, shielding his eyes from view. Though even though most of his face was obscured by shadows, Al definitely recognised him.

"General?"

Ed turned around sharply at the name, instantly frowning. The man pulled back his hood and gave them a wave. "Hey, fancy meeting you here."

As he wandered up to them, Al saw that Roy was still in his uniform. He cocked his head to one side. "Don't you have the weekend off?"

Roy shook his head miserably. "I have to work all the time now that I'm a General. It's not easy, you know," He complained, turning his gaze to the rain beating down on the windows. "I'm on my lunch break, and I decided to take a break before the weather changed."

He continued to watch the rain spatter on the pavement before noticing that Ed looked a little grumpy himself. He smirked, "I see that Fullmetal's not in a good mood today."

"Considering we're stuck in a shelter with you, you think I would be?" Ed gave a fake laugh. "My stumps are hurting and I'm hungry, too."

As he spoke, he rose up and wandered over to the bags that they'd placed on the floor and dug out an apple. He sat back down and started nibbling on it slowly, hoping to make it last. Roy merely chuckled and shoved his hands into his pockets. "I'm surprised a runt like you even needs to eat, observing your height. How old are you now, 17, right? Shouldn't you be taller?"

Ed's eyebrow's furrowed as he stood up. "I'm _not_ short!"

Roy dismissed his arguing with a wave of his hand. "Sure you're not. Anyway, what are you two doing out? Shopping?" He asked, changing the subject.

Al nodded. "Yeah, we only just finished when it started raining."

Looking to his left, Roy saw that Ed had calmed down, but had shifted further away from him so his body was pressed up against the wall. His eyes glared straight ahead, refusing to look him in the eye. Even at 17, he still acted like a child. He was even at the rank of Colonel, too. Roy suspected he would straighten up and start acting more maturely, but he continued to snap at being called small and couldn't control his temper over little things. It was ridiculous, really.

Next, Roy turned his gaze to Al. He thought he'd been looking pale recently, and he wasn't seeing things. Al had grown thinner and he didn't leave the house as often as he used to. Sometimes he'd visit the military and have chats with the guards at the entrance while he walked over with Ed. Sometimes, the Führer would invite him in for some tea which Al would very much enjoy. Now, he stayed inside his house a lot and let Ed go to work on his own, though he remained cheerful. He didn't seem to be eating a lot lately, either.

"I think it's starting to clear up now!"

Ed's and Roy's heads both snapped up as Al pointed to the sky outside. The dark rain clouds were drifting away slowly, and the sheets of rain had turned into a light drizzle. The sun poked through the gaps in the sky and lit up the road. Ed mentioned his stumps had stopped aching so he stood up and stretched, now searching for a bin to put the apple he'd finished in.

"That's great," Roy said, though his eyes narrowed as he peered at Al. "Hey, Alphonse, are you feeling alright? You look a little ill."

"Well, we did skip breakfast this morning..." Al laughed weakly before teetering slightly. Ed ran over to see him, but had arrived too late as Al fainted.

Ed growled as he lifted his brother up. "Not again!"

"'Again'?" Roy asked worriedly, as he knelt down to see. "This has happened before?"

"I'll tell you later!" Ed called over his shoulder as he ran off, an unconscious Al in his arms.

* * *

The three arrived shortly at the brothers's apartment. Ed placed Al gently on the living room's sofa and pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "He's fainted before, when I was cleaning out a wound he'd gotten after he'd fallen over. But he's also been having a lot of headaches, and unknown cuts he hasn't been telling me about. I really don't know what's wrong with him, Colonel."

Roy ignored the fact that he'd been called Colonel instead of General, and looked closely at Al's face. It was a ghostly pale now, and his breathing was shallow. He looked very ill, to him. "Have you seen a doctor?" He asked.

Ed shook his head. "I tried to phone one, but Al insisted he was completely fine. I wasn't keen on the idea, trust me. He's just too stubborn!" He turned around, fists clenched and head low. "I don't want to see him ill, he just won't let me take care of him!"

The General put a hand on his colleague's shoulder. "He'll be fine, I'm sure of it. When did this start happening?"

"I'm not too sure... but I noticed it around a month after I got his body back, around the time I was promoted to Colonel, actually." Ed replied, sucking in a breath. He glanced at Al, who stirred uncomfortably, most likely feeling pain. "Sometimes I'd find him bleeding for no reason, and he'd dismiss it as it being a simple accident."

"Do you think something went wrong when you got his body back?" Roy asked. Ed's shoulders tensed.

"No... no, there was nothing wrong. It was an equivalent exchange, so his body's perfect! It's probably a disease..." The blond alchemist started to babble, his eyes growing wider and wider in his frustration and sweat started to bead his forehead.

"Fullmetal, calm down!" Roy had to raise his voice slightly in order to get Ed to stop talking and face him. He looked severely worried, which unnerved Roy to see him in such a state. "Can you tell me, how did you get his body back?"

The question caused Ed to shudder. He looked down at the floor, the fear and worry never leaving his eyes. The sweat on his forehead rolled down his face and dripped on the floor, as his breathing became faster. He suddenly sat down on the chair near him and buried his head in his hands. His body trembled, and muffled sobs came from the cracks between his fingers. Roy stared at him, not knowing what to say. He watched as Ed tried to stop shaking and calm himself. He finally looked back up at his superior officer, looking very guilty.

"I... I made a deal with them... to get Al's body back." He mumbled. Roy cocked an eyebrow.

"'Them'? Who is 'them'?" He asked. Ed turned back the floor.

"The homunculi."

Roy was speechless. "Wh-what?"

Ed growled. "You heard me. They were the ones who injured Al enough to the point when he needed his old body back! They promised... they promised to bring him back if I agreed to do anything for them."

"And you went through with this?" Roy asked, throwing his arms out in despair. "What were you thinking—"

"What would you would've done? I doubt you'd let your own brother die in front of you!" Ed yelled, standing up and glared into Roy's dark blue eyes, his voice higher in his anger. "I had no choice!"

Roy's jaw tightened as Ed sat back down, face back in his hands. He couldn't reply to that, though he still couldn't believe that Ed had agreed to such a deal, especially with the homunculi. It just wasn't like him!"

"I don't know if it's a flaw... but it could just be an illness. I'll take him to the doctor tomorrow." Ed finally said, sounding much calmer. Roy sighed.

"Maybe so. I won't tell anyone about this, alright, Fullmetal?" He said. Ed nodded as a reply. "I need to get back to work... will you be okay?"

Ed waved a hand. "Sure."

Roy gave him a wave before leaving the door. He almost fell down once he stepped outside. Of course, he couldn't tell anyone about what Ed had told him, but it shocked him to say the least. It was probably in a moment of panic... and who knew how crafty those homunculi were. He didn't know all of them just yet, but they were probably all clever in that kind of thing. There was a high probability it was their fault Al had been feeling pains. Yet, it may be a disease, as Ed had suggested.

They wouldn't know for sure until they saw a doctor... or saw the homunculi themselves.

_~ x ~_

**A/N: Ahaha, mystery! 8D I said I wouldn't include any OC's, and I doubt Alfie and Constance would be included as OC's, because they were just there for the sake of that moment (and because I ran out of things to say). Enjoy c:**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: And this, mis amigos, is where the action begins. Well, I hope it does. D: The next chapters onwards will be more or less actiony, too. C: I didn't get a lot of reviews last time, I'm hoping to get a few more this time around. I like reviews you know, even if it's only like, one sentence. xD **

**By the way, this chapter isn't part of the game. I made this part up myself and I'm going to do so for a while. I'm trying to go on my own path for now, though I'm not sure of the ending yet. **

_~ x ~_

The doctor pulled his stethoscope away from Al's chest and removed his glasses, eyebrows furrowing. "He has a very high fever, and his blood is having difficulty clotting. I can't identify the problem just yet, though the symptoms are similar to anemia."

"Will you come back again and make sure?" Ed asked as the doctor gathered up his suitcase and headed for the door. He nodded and waved before leaving. Slumping into a seat after the door closed, Ed sighed and rubbed his temples. It had been over a day since Al had passed out for the second time, while they were with Roy. It was now early Monday morning, and Ed had work again. He didn't want to leave Alphonse on his own, but had put on his military uniform if there was of an emergency.

He never moved Al from his spot on the sofa, and he remained there, sometimes stirring and moaning in his sleep. Often the skin on his body would burst and Ed would have to continuously clean it and bandage the wounds up, though they'd just reopen again. Al made sounds of discomfort and pain throughout the night, which broke Ed's heart. He couldn't do anything about it until the doctor found a cure for him.

Ed would wake up every couple of hours each night and check to see if Al had any more wounds or if his old ones reopened. By Monday, he was exhausted due to two nights with interrupted sleep. He wasn't sure if he could manage work at all today, if he actually went. Alphonse looked extremely ill; his skin was almost white, Ed could count his ribs and sweat constantly dripped off his face. Like the doctor had said, his temperature was at least 40°C, and his forehead was red-hot at the touch.

The whole situation had put Ed under so much stress; he wondered how long he could take it.

"_Uuughh..._"

The blankets around Al's lap fell to the floor as he stirred, opening his eyes wearily. His golden orbs were clouded over and, judging by the way he squinted to see around the room, blurred. Ed ran over to him and pushed him back down as he tried to get up. "Alphonse, please, you're not well!"

"Brother...?" Al blinked at him. "What happened... How long was I asleep?"

"Over a day," Ed noted, before Al's eyes shot open in surprise as he jerked forward, instantly flinching at his sore joints and throbbing headache.

He tried to swing his legs over the sofa, staring at his brother in alarm, before shouting, "I couldn't have been out for that long! You must have been worried sick!  
I'm so sorry, Brother, I'm fine! I just need to get up and walk around for a bit!" Alphonse then fell over onto the floor, his headache becoming too much for him.

"Al, please don't force yourself!" Ed said, lifting his younger brother's head and then sliding his hands beneath his back, slowly lifted him back onto the sofa. "I really  
don't want you walking around. I'll stay home and take care of you today."

Alphonse scoffed, which he normally never did. "Brother, I swear I'm fine. Please don't panic!" He held himself back from snapping. Avoiding his brother's gaze, he  
still felt that his anger was growing increasingly. Ed stood up without yelling as usual, instead just glaring at Al with a stern look. He just wasn't going to get  
through to him, no matter what he said or did.

Before Al was going to say anything, Ed needed to find out what was wrong with him. If it wasn't a sickness, then the only option left was that the homunculi could've tampered with his body before restoring it. The doctor wouldn't be able to tell what was wrong with him if that was the case.

"If you say so. Then if you're fine, should I go to work?" He asked after a tense silence. Al nodded, still not looking at him. Ed exhaled loudly and turned away. He remained silent while he reached for his military jacket and, putting it on, he opened the front door and left. He knew it was wrong of him to leave Al while he was seriously sick, but his brother wasn't going to confess to it. Now, he swore that a vein popped in his forehead as his anger reached its limits. Close to breaking down on the pavement and screaming his lungs off, Ed sucked in another deep breath and picked up his pace. By two minutes, he was already breaking into a sprint.

___There's a good chance those bastards did something to him, if the doctor couldn't figure it out_, He thought. _It's their fault... the homunculi's..._

_It _has_ to be!_

* * *

"Bradley!"

Edward almost kicked the Führer's doors open, storming inside and slamming his fist down on the desk. His golden pupils had shrunk in his rage and his face was warped and twisted with fury. His breathing came out in shallow, forced breaths through teeth that were gritted together firmly. His chest rose and fell heavily from running continually, and his uniform was wrinkled and creased.

"What the hell is going on here?" He practically screamed. Bradley didn't even blink, let alone flinch at his sudden shouting. He only folded his papers into a neat pile and put them aside, folding his hands together calmly.

"Don't look so emotional, Fullmetal." He told him. He never once opened his eyes, keeping them shut and his hands together. Ed just managed to stop himself from tearing his hair out at the simple answer.

His fingers scraped the table in his frustration as he opened his mouth to start yelling again, "It's about my brother's body! _You_ said it was alright! It was an equivalent exchange, you lying bastard!" Ed spat, amber orbs glared through the fall of golden bangs. He reached out to grip Bradley's collar and shake him, but he was stopped by the Führer's hand.

"Perhaps the price wasn't enough." Was his next answer. Ed stopped and stared at him for a moment before his temper bubbled up again.

"What do you mean, '_the price wasn't enough_'? Then what else can I do? What else can I give in exchange?"

"Do you remember our agreement?"

Ed remained silent, but nodded.

"You're willing to do anything for us, am I correct?" Bradley finally opened his eyes and stared solemnly at the alchemist's angry face. Ed's jaw tightened furiously before he pulled back his outstretched arm and held his breath. Bradley seemed to be pleased and smiled. It wasn't a friendly smile, but it wasn't as cold as it should've been. It took all of Ed's willpower not to shout again, but Bradley took his silence as a positive answer. "Well, we can sort out your brother's body."

Ed narrowed his eyes suspiciously. What would he pull off this time?

"That is... if you'll do something for us like you agreed."

"What is it, Bradley?" Ed growled.

"The soldiers who were murdered were ones also becoming suspicious of the homunculi's business. They became too inquisitive and we had to dispose of them," He began, though noticed Edward was trembling. Ignoring his secretary, he continued. "There are a few more to rid of, but I'm afraid Envy may become a little too carried away like last time."

"So it was that bastard to did it, huh?" Ed asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Anyway, we want you to rid of the remaining soldiers." Bradley continued. Ed's breathing stopped.

"What?"

Bradley nodded. "Do whatever's necessary."

Clenching his fists, Ed's lip curled back into a big enough snarl that his gums were visible. In less than a second he'd clapped his hands and transmuted his automail arm into a blade and lunged for Bradley's chest. The Führer didn't move, instead calling, "Envy!"_  
_

Ed spun around as the door was slammed open suddenly, a nimble figure darting inside. It swiftly gripped Ed's wrists before yanking them harshly behind his back, then forcibly bending him over so the side of his face was crushed against the table. When Ed looked up, he didn't see the face of the androgynous shapeshifter, instead that of a tall, broad-shouldered officer with short dirty-blond hair. He had the exact same smirk, though.

"So, I guess that's a no? What a pity," He shook his head in disappointment, before a white line and red sparks moved up his body and changed his appearance back to his usual preferred form, sneering. "_And_ you tried to harm the Führer? What would have happened if you'd _killed_ him? The whole country would've find out, and what trouble you'd be in!"

"If he's one of you, then that means he can heal himself. Nobody would've noticed any wound," Ed grunted, wincing due to his uncomfortable position.

Envy snorted and rolled his eyes. "Don't be a fool. Wrath was originally human, so that means he _can't_ regenerate. Besides, you broke our deal!"

Ed laughed, "Me? What about _you_? You screwed around with Al's body, didn't you? Don't give me that crap about the 'price not being enough'." Wriggling under his captor's grip, he tried to lash out a kick but Envy sidestepped with ease, then jabbed him in the side painfully. Next, he only pressed harder against his head and tightened his hold on his wrists. Ed held back a cry of pain and continued to glare.

"Don't try that, pipsqueak. Why don't you shut up and behave for once?" Envy hissed in his ear. Ed's anger increased at being called small, though he remained quiet. He saw Bradley rise and walk around his desk through the corner of his eye. He stood by the window, his back turned to them.

"Fullmetal," He started. "You'll do as I say; rid of the remaining soldiers or you can watch Alphonse eventually die."

Envy had to hold Ed tighter, pressing his head further into the desk as he kicked and thrashed about. "You sick...! That's out of the question! Like I'd go that far!"

Bradley cocked an eyebrow. "So you'd _rather_ see his body rot?"

"You son of a—!" Ed spat, before Envy finally released his grip. Barely having a chance to jump up and strike, Ed was thrown against the wall. Envy leapt forward and held him by the throat, cutting off his air supply.

The homunculus grinned sadistically and chuckled. "You see, pipsqueak? That's what happens when you try our patience! Your brother will be history if you keep resisting. Now, are you gonna listen to us from now on?"

Ed scrabbled at Envy's hand, but he had an iron grip. He could already feel himself become light-headed from the lack of oxygen, having the wind knocked out of him once he was thrown against the wall he was pinned to. As hard as it was to, Ed managed a nod. Envy looked pleased as he gave a hard push on Ed's neck, then let him slide to the floor. The alchemist coughed and gasped for air, meanwhile struggling to stand up. Bradley turned and sat back down on his desk, reaching for more documents, as if the whole incident had never happened.

Waving his hand, Bradley gestured to the door. "Be on your way. Don't tell anyone about this, remember,"

Ed spat out blood scornfully before leaving, straightening out his back and flinching when his open wounds throbbed.

"Envy, clean up the mess," The Führer said and pointed to the blood stains on the floor. Envy pouted, shifting back to his Second Lieutenant disguise and exited to find a mop.

* * *

It had been around half an hour before Roy had noticed Edward had been in the Führer's office for an unusually long time. He hadn't seen him carrying tea, because he had stormed in anger, teeth and fists clenched and ignoring anyone who had said a simple 'good morning' to him. His hair and uniform were rough and untidy, and his face was creased in fury. Had it been because of last night?

He pondered for a while. The homunculi had been the ones to bring Alphonse's body back, and in exchange, Ed had agreed to do anything for them. He remembered thinking about the possibility that the homunculi could have easily tampered with Al's body before restoring it. Perhaps he'd been angry because of that? Roy abandoned the pile of paperwork at his desk and quietly left his office for a while, hoping to find his colleague.

Two minutes later, Roy found Ed in his old office, muttering curses as he scribbled names messily down on his own work. Since he'd been promoted to Colonel, he'd inherited Roy's old office and he'd gained a new one. Of course, Ed had inherited Roy's unfinished paperwork, too.

"Hey, Fullmetal," Roy called in, poking his head around the door. "Mind if I have a word with you?"

"Can't you see I'm busy?" Ed snapped, slamming a pile of finished documents next to him, then reaching for new ones.

Roy scratched the back of his head. "Yes, but it's kind of important."

Ed sighed dramatically before throwing his pen aside. "Fine,"

Pulling up a spare seat from a desk nearby, Roy sat down opposite him and cleared his throat before starting. He noticed quickly that Ed looked a little banged up; his sleeve was torn slightly and there was a large bruise on the left side of his face. His wrists had red marks around them and his hair was even more ruffled than before. There was also a smear of dried blood at the corner of his mouth and on his chin. Roy narrowed his eyes and spoke up.

"How's Alphonse?"

"Called a doctor this morning... he wasn't sure what was wrong with him," Ed mumbled flatly. Roy nodded.

"I see. Mind telling me what happened in the Führer's office?" He asked. Ed's shoulder twitched. He opened his mouth to answer truthfully, knowing he wouldn't get out of it with Roy this time, though he saw Envy lingering outside the door which Roy had accidentally left open. Of course, Envy was in his Second Lieutenant disguise, but he was still listening. He moved his hand in a cutting motion by his neck threateningly. Ed swallowed and laughed weakly.

"Oh, we just talked. Nothing to be worried about,"

Roy looked at him doubtfully. "But there's blood on your mouth... and your sleeve is torn."

"My gum started bleeding earlier, and I ripped my sleeve on the door handle this morning, that's all,"

Looking around Roy's head, Ed saw that Envy had backed off a little, looking happy with his answer. He could breathe a little easier, though Roy wasn't buying it. To be honest, he wasn't too keen on lying like this, since Roy knew that he'd made a deal with the homunculi. He could tell him later if he went over his house or something.

"I see..." Roy repeated. "Sorry to waste your time, I was just curious."

Both Ed and Envy were surprised to see him get up and leave so quickly. Ed's eyes had widened and Envy scrambled to hide himself behind a wall as the General placed the seat he had taken back where he had found it, and exited quietly. Roy was too busy thinking to notice Envy hiding, though it was quite obvious to anyone passing by that he looked suspicious.

Roy definitely knew there was more to what Ed had told him. He'd looked a little nervous... and the rip in his sleeve was too large to have been made by a door handle. Not to mention the bruise and the red marks on his wrists hadn't been there when he had arrived this morning. He knew that Ed wasn't going to tell him anything for the time being, so there wasn't any point in pressuring him. To be honest, it reminded him of the situation Ed was in with his brother.

* * *

The day went by quickly, and the two didn't see each other for the rest of it. Ed was busy with his paperwork and Roy was struggling with his. They also saw each other on the way out, only merely waving and leaving without saying a word.

When he got home, Ed saw that Al was still in the same spot on the sofa. He was asleep, though his face looked pained. He didn't want to wake him up, so Ed removed his military jacket and flung it on a chair and tugged out the band that kept his hair in a ponytail. It was too messy by now, and it felt uncomfortable. He never liked wearing it down either, because it would often tangle in his automail whenever he brought a hand to his face.

Lifting his head when Alphonse moaned in discomfort, he went over and touched his forehead. It was still hot, but not as hot as it had been this morning. So that was a little improvement, but he was still sweating and a few of his wounds had reopened.

Ed fetched the bucket and cloth again and filled it with water. He reached for some bandages and carried them over and set them next to Al's side. The wound on his right shoulder was bleeding a little more and had seeped right through the bandage it was bound in, and the wound on his left arm had split too. Ed removed the bandages as gently as he could and dabbed them with the water. Al whimpered a little, though stilled by the time Ed had finished and wrapped them up again. He stood back and went to empty the bucket out though, a soft moan stopped him.

"Ed...?"

"Hey, Al," Ed said. "Are you feeling alright?"

"A bit better..."

He smiled. At least that was an improvement. Al tried to sit up, this time with a little less trouble. He looked at his freshly cleaned and bandaged wounds and looked back at Ed. "Did you bandage these for me?"

Ed nodded without saying anything. Al grinned. "Thanks for that, Brother."

"Sure," Ed looked out of the window. The sky was a pale orange, the sun just going under the hills. The pressure of Envy or Bradley watching him had lifted, though he wondered what Roy was currently thinking. He probably would've told him what had actually happened back in Bradley's office, if Envy hadn't been watching him. Right now, he just had to focus on Al... and what Bradley had ordered him to do.

_Kill people?_ That was a line he wasn't going to cross. He couldn't... and now that he knew that it was Envy who had committed the murders, most likely under the cover of Alphonse's face.

Ed knew he couldn't keep the deal up, especially at that price.

_~ x ~_

**A/N: IT'S REVEALED 8D Wait what did I reveal D: Well, at least Envy's back. Gotta love that guy. I'm not too keen on this chapter... it's just mehish from the part Ed leaves Bradley's office. I had to rewrite what happened after that like 3 times. :C**

**I want moar reviews this time bros :C If dat's okai**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Oh my god where the hell have I been. It's been what, 9, 10 days since I've last updated? I am so sorry. I had a huge case of art block for the most of it and then school got in the way. D: But enough of me, enjoy chapter 7. :C **

**Reply to JJNation: Bradley is Wrath, because the game is based on the manga. Pride technically didn't exist because that part hadn't been written then. **

_~ x ~_

Roy sat in his office, head buried in his hands. His head was clouded with thoughts; he was much too distracted to work. He looked across the room through the cracks of his fingers, and slowly reached for a sheet of plain paper and a pen. Drops of ink sank through the paper as Roy held the pen in one place, struggling what to write. He was planning to write down everything that seemed suspicious, because he was starting to feel a little nervous around the Führer. He couldn't help that Bradley seemed to be acting strange recently, and the tall blond-haired officer, whose name he couldn't remember, had visited him a lot.

Tapping his fingers against his desk, he exhaled noisily.

"Let's see, Fullmetal was in the Führer's office for an unusually long time," He mumbled, jotting down rough words. "Plus he had several bruises. The homunculi could be behind the whole thing..."

Only a small paragraph had been written by the time Roy had run out of thoughts. He only had down the facts about Ed returning from the Führer's office late with blood on his mouth and bruises, when he had made a deal with the homunculi and that the doctor couldn't find anything wrong with Alphonse. Roy dropped his pen and stood up. Outside the window, the sky was beginning to darken and there was a warm breeze. Normally the summer weather, even at night, would have cheered him up, but everything that was going on around him just made everything seem cold. He shivered. He didn't know if the weather had changed that quickly or it was just him going insane with all the stuff that was going on in his mind.

A knock on the door quickly snapped him awake. He called, "Come in!"

"I'm sorry to disturb," A familiar voice said before Bradley stepped inside. Roy narrowed his eyes though stood up straight, saluting at the same time. Bradley raised his hand and smiled. "There's no need for that, General. I just came to ask if you were feeling alright. You've been a little quiet lately."

Roy managed a weak laugh. "Oh, I'm fine. There's a lot on my mind, I suppose."

"That so?" Bradley's smile faded and he looked more serious. Roy swallowed and braced himself for anything odd. Strangely, Bradley stood there and continued to eye him. It felt a bit awkward, since Roy could only wait for him to say something. Eventually, Bradley turned around and began to walk out of the door. "I see. Take care of yourself."

As he left, Roy managed to get a glimpse of the tall blond officer again. He was hanging around the doorway, and as the door closed, Roy swore he could hear him snicker. He slumped back down into his seat, letting out a loud groan. Even a small meeting like that was starting to stress him out.

Suddenly, the phone rang. Roy sat up straight and picked it up, balancing it on his shoulder while reaching for his documents. "Hello, this is General Roy Mustang speaking,"

"_Hey, it's me,_"

"Oh, Fullmetal. Everything alright?" Roy dropped his work and held the phone properly.

"_Yeah, I just phoned to say that Al's feeling better. His wounds have stopped reopening and his headache is going_,"

Roy sighed in relief and smiled. "Really? That's good news. You think he's recovering?"

He heard Ed pause on the other end._ "I hope so, otherwise I wouldn't really know what to do."_

"Well, at least everything's okay for now,"

"_You're right. Hey, I'll talk to you later, okay? I don't want to keep you from anything," _

Roy's eyebrow twitched. "Yeah, the paperwork that _you_ left me to do while you're not here!"

Ed laughed before saying a goodbye and hanging up. The General let the phone drop to the table heavily and begun to restart his work with a whine. The phone call had calmed him down a little, so he supposed he could work without worrying.

* * *

Meanwhile, Alphonse had began to walk around a bit more. At first, he struggled while holding onto a piece of furniture or Ed's shoulder. Some of his wounds still bled, but his headache was disappearing and he wasn't having any more pains. Of course he still felt unwell, but he was adamant to at least walk around for a bit and let Edward relax instead of treating him constantly.

He'd told Ed to put on his uniform like yesterday, due to any emergencies or if he had to rush in for some reason. He'd been skeptical whether there would be one, but Al had insisted.

"Okay, I phoned the Colonel," Ed wandered into the room, placing the phone back on the table. Al looked up.

"He's a _General _now, remember? Anyway, what did he say?"

Ed sat down on the sofa opposite his brother. "He's just glad you're feeling better,"

Al sighed. "That's good,"

Standing up and wandering over to the kitchen, Ed frowned. "Want me to cook dinner for us tonight?" He called over his shoulder, rummaging through the kitchen cupboards. Al relaxed his shoulders and laid his head back on the sofa.

"Thanks, Brother, that would be great,"

Al wasn't particularly looking forward to whatever Ed was planning to make, because he was awful at cooking. Often his meals would end up tasting horrible, either so undercooked that Al would end up vomiting due to the raw ingredients used, or they would end up terribly burnt. Either way they resulted badly. Ed simply didn't know his way around recipes or an oven.

He watched silently as Ed continued to read the instructions, grabbing ingredients and accidentally mixing them up. Groaning, Al turned over and tried to sleep for a few minutes, feeling the sickness in his stomach starting to worsen. The knocks coming from the kitchen nearby made it hard, but sleep took over eventually.

Later, when Al awoke, the smell of slightly burnt rice drifted over him and made him sit up and peer over. Ed was placing bowls down on the table, his face sweating slightly from the hot kitchen. Al tried to move, though struggled as he got his legs over the edge of the sofa. Seeing he was having difficulty, Ed moved over and squatted next to him.

"Hey, easy, you're still ill, remember?"

"I suppose, but I'm feeling better than I was earlier!" Al protested, putting an arm around Ed's shoulder as his brother helped him up. They walked over to the table and setting Al down, Ed collapsed lazily into his own chair. While he was recovering from cooking nonstop, Al looked at what he had made. Just two bowls of rice and soup, though it seemed it had taken a while for Ed to make them. This time, they didn't actually look too bad. Sure, the rice was burnt a little but was easy enough to swallow without difficulty.

Al smiled and said, "You did pretty well this time,"

"Wasn't so hard," Ed scoffed, sitting up straight and leaning over to take his glass of water. Sipping it, he moodily added, "Guess it's not as good as yours. I tried to go with something simple for your stomach. It's still pretty weak, right?"

Nodding, Al started to play with his rice while staring at it. "Yeah, I suppose. Thanks."

They ate their dinner in silence, avoiding eye contact and slowly picking at their food in boredom. Lately a conversation was hard to start-up. Al hadn't been going out anywhere and work was just the same for Ed, if you excluded the fact that Bradley was blackmailing him. Their plates had only just been finished before they heard a knock on the door. Ed stood up and straightened out his messy collar. "I'll get it,"

When he opened the door, he saw that Riza stood outside, wearing a black raincoat. Ed saluted. "Lieutenant Hawkeye, is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine, Ed. It's my day off, so I just came to say hello." Riza replied, giving him a smile. Ed smiled back and moved aside.

"Come on in then. We just finished dinner, but there's some rice left if you want any,"

"Don't worry about that, I ate before I left. Speaking of which," Riza waved to Al. "Hello Alphonse, how are you feeling?"

Al grinned. "A little better."

Riza seemed pleased, nodding once in approval. "I'm glad. Everyone was worried about you, especially when you stopped visiting. Even the General isn't his usual self."

"Really?" Al looked up in surprise. "I'm sorry to make you worry! Please, I'm okay!"

He didn't notice that Ed frowned a little, looking at him then back to Riza. She seemed quite happy, despite the fact Ed knew that Al definitely was not alright. Sure, he said he was feeling better, and his fever and gone down, but that didn't mean he had recovered. His face was still pale and you could clearly see his ribcage. His cheekbones were starting to show, so his face was sharper and he'd been letting his hair grow, so it reached just past his ears, looking a little untamed. He'd been too ill to be taken out for a haircut, so he'd set he'd let it grow until he was better again.

"The murder case still hasn't been solved," Riza mentioned, turning to Ed who snapped out of his thoughts. Nervously swallowing, he turned to look at Al. He was certain he wasn't the one behind the murders; Bradley had said so himself. Now he wasn't sure if a random person happened to have the same hair colour as Alphonse and just happened to be there at the time, or if the homunculi had deliberately set it up.

"Oh, hasn't it?" Ed mumbled quietly.

Riza shook her head. "No, there haven't been any more recently, or any eye-witness reports." She looked at Al, who looked a little confused.

"Murders? What happened?"

Ed scratched the back of his head sheepishly and turned to Riza, who explained hesitantly. "Well, there have been recent killings of several military guards a few days ago. At the moment Alphonse... you're the main suspect."

"_What?_" Alphonse cried, shooting up in his seat, though he hunched over and started coughing uncontrollably. "I didn't do any of that, I swear! I haven't killed anyone in my life!"

Ed went over to him and sat him down, rubbing his back to stop his coughs. He sat back down in his seat and breathed slowly, trying to recover. He tried to look at Riza, who seemed a little upset. "I know that Alphonse, I know you wouldn't do such a thing. We just had a report of someone witnessing a young man around your age with the same hair colour at the scene; I'm sure it wasn't you! The military is a bit rash to think things over... but we're positive we'll work things out eventually."

Clenching his fists together nervously, Ed bit his lip. He was dying to tell them that it definitely hadn't been Alphonse, but that would be giving away the fact he'd made a deal with the homunculi. The only person he'd let it slip to was Roy, and it was going to stay that way unless things turned for the worse.

Alphonse looked away. "I see... well, I hope it clears up soon."

"I'm sure it will," Riza reassured him. "The General's still looking into it."

Ed's ears perked up at the mention of Roy. He could tell that he'd been a little suspicious, especially after Ed's extended meeting in the Fuhrer's office. He wasn't sure if the lie about the blood and the tears had worked, after all Roy didn't really fall for stuff like that easily. When he had phoned him earlier, Roy had sounded fine, albeit a little tired.

A silence passed through the three of them. Al looked very upset upon the news, and Riza looked guilty about telling him. Ed could only stand there and watch, since there was no conversation to start. It had often been like this since Al had become ill.

Another cough from Al caused him to look up. His face had turned a deathly pale, and his eyes were dull and foggy. He honestly looked like he was about to throw up. Ed narrowed his eyes. "Hey Al... are you feeling alright?"

"I think I'm going to be sick..."

Wincing, Ed dashed over to the cupboard beneath the kitchen sink and pulled out a bucket, handing it over to his brother. Alphonse almost snatched it away from him and hurled into it, turning away from the two. Riza looked a little startled, while Ed looked extremely worried. After Al was seemingly done, he kept his hands over his stomach and his head down, gagging every now and again.

Riza wandered over to Ed and tapped him on the shoulder, bringing her face in closer and whispered, "Are you sure he's okay? He looked fine a while ago..."

Ed sighed. "I don't know... I really don't. He's fainted before and had these awful stomach and headaches. He hasn't vomited until now, though I'm not sure if was just my cooking." He tried to think about that option, but denied it since he wasn't feeling any disturbance in his own stomach. "I don't..."

Alphonse began to cough again, snapping Ed's and Riza's head over to his direction. He kept his head down, though it wasn't long before he let out a groan and collapsed to the floor. Ed gasped and ran over to him, shaking his shoulders. "Al!"

"What... what's wrong with him?" Riza said worriedly as she went over to see that Al was out cold, not responding to any of Ed's shouts.

Noticing that Ed's short temper was starting to flare, Riza stepped back a little. Ed grinded his teeth and turned around, facing the door. "Lieutenant, can you do something for me?"

"Er, sure," Riza looked surprised as Ed reached for his jacket and opened the front door. "Where are you going? It's pretty dark out there."

"I need to go and do something, please look after Al! I promise I won't be too long!" He called as the door slammed rather loudly on him. Riza held Al in her arms and stared out of the window to see Ed racing past, his jacket barely clinging to him. He looked furious, confused even. Of course she had absolutely no idea where he was going or what he had in his mind, but she could only stay here and watch over Al. She had fed Black Hayate, and he could look after himself if she was a bit late arriving home.

* * *

Outside, Ed panted heavily as he sprinted down the street, hair flying out in golden wisps behind him. The sky was now a very dark blue, early stars showing and a large full moon poked out over the hills. The air was colder and the lights in their neighbours' houses were on along with the street lamps. Ed knew exactly where he was going, and this time he wasn't going to hesitate like he had done the last time. He was going to get some proper answers out of Bradley and he was going to make Al better, even if it cost him his life. Perhaps now wasn't the best time to start any fights, but Alphonse looked like he was at Death's door already.

It was about 7 PM, and Ed suspected Bradley to be leaving around now. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays he'd often work overtime for another few hours, so that made things a bit easier. The night guards would be hanging around, but he was sure he'd be able to catch Bradley in his office, hopefully alone.

When he arrived, he was forced to bend over to regain his breath. Normally he'd had stopped to have regained his wind, but Al had worried him severely. Looking up, he saw that the night guards were distracted, talking to a Second Lieutenant. Ed crept around the front gate and took an exit around the right side of the building where the secretary wouldn't see him. The lights were still on in the hallways but it was silent. Ed held his breath and snuck quietly down the corridors, sweat starting to bead on his forehead.

The Führer's door was shut, but Ed could hear a shuffles of paper and movement. _Bradley is in there for sure, _Ed thought._ Better take him out now..._

He swung the door open, the Führer looking at him in surprise. Pulling his lips back into a furious snarl, Ed lunged, fist flying forwards.

_~ x ~_

**A/N: THERE it's finally done this took ages. Review you losers. D: Nah I'm kidding you guys are awesome. EXACTLY 3000 WORDS.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Back so soon? :O I guess it's to make up for not updating in like, for ever. **

_~ x ~_

Ed barely had a chance to get close as Bradley unsheathed his sword. Skidding to a halt, Ed backed off a few steps and realised it hadn't been such a good idea to attack him like that. Perhaps they had never battled, but he had seen Bradley slice things apart without even noticing him taking out his sword. He could kill him, along with anyone else, any time he wanted.

Diving forward, Bradley knocked Ed onto his back and, unsheathing his second sword, pinned him down by his sleeves. His wrists were held near his head painfully so he couldn't jump up or even kick, knowing that the Führer could easily avoid him.

"What's this about then, Fullmetal?" Bradley asked calmly. "Don't tell me you're still angry?"

Struggling to tear his sleeves away, Ed glared into the Führer's steel eye. "Al's body is really starting to worry me! It wasn't equivalent exchange!"

Bradley didn't seem amused by his secretary's angry cries. "Didn't I tell you to take care of the remaining guards?"

"Like I'd do that," Ed snorted in response.

"I'm afraid that was our deal,"

"I told you, no way in hell!"

Bradley watched as Ed continued to squirm under his firm grasp. It was clear in the alchemist's eyes that he wasn't going to kill anyone, which was rather irritating. Perhaps he should let Father take care of him. Deciding that was a good choice, Bradley removed his swords and sheathed them, nodding. "If that's the case, then that's fine. I'll see to your brother's body."

Abruptly Ed shot up as his sleeves were released, almost banging his head on the desk he was so close to. _What did he just say?_ Ed thought to himself. _He's letting me off the hook just like that? There's a catch to this for sure..._

"We can speak to my Father about this."

Cocking an eyebrow, Ed watched as Bradley stood up and unlocked a drawer beneath his desk. There wasn't anything out of the ordinary, but since this was the Führer of Amestris and at the same time a homunculus, he could be dealing with anything. He watched as Bradley seemed to press something before the wall behind him jerked suddenly. The concrete smoothly pulled apart, leaving them both facing a stairway leading downwards.

Ed blinked in surprise, his mouth opening slightly. "Since when has that been there?"

"A long time now," Bradley answered simple, putting his hands behind his back as he began to walk down the steps. "Please follow me."

The walls were a shiny grey in colour, though there was grime coating the floor and broken pipes lay hanging from the ceiling. Bradley continued climbing downwards, not looking over his shoulder to see if Ed was following. Ed wasn't at all comfortable with going down there, but what choice did he have? Breathing deeply, he took a shaky step forward and began to follow nervously. When he'd only climbed down two or three stairs he walls slammed shut behind him almost immediately, surrounded them sudden darkness.

Squinting, Ed saw there was faint light shining from the bottom of the stairs, and he could still see Bradley's back, so he saw roughly where he was going. It was still difficult not to slip and fall, though he managed to hold himself upright by holding on to the unclean handrail. Minutes later, he stumbled down to the floor and groped his way around, Bradley now seeming to have disappeared from sight. That or the darkness was worse down here, though Ed swore he had seen light. There was a draft, so that meant there were windows.

_Maybe the clouds had blocked the moon from view?_ Ed thought to himself, holding his breath. _It wasn't that dark outside._

Apparently, he was right. The light eventually returned through the several broken windows. Now that the place was dimly lit, Ed took a look around and drank in the cold, musty air of the headquarters' basement. His footsteps echoed against the hard, grey walls and ceiling as he wandered around.

_Does anyone else know about this place besides from Bradley?_

Chains hung from the ceiling and icy water lay in the cracks of the tiled floor. Unknown substances trickled down the old pipes and mice squeaked from underneath crates. It was an eerie atmosphere, though the scary part was that Bradley had completely vanished. Ed couldn't hear his footsteps anymore and of course he was the one who actually brought him down here. What if it was some kind of trap? Perhaps he had locked him down here and left him to rot, or maybe he'd gone to hurt Alphonse? There wasn't any way to be sure.

Ed tried not to panic, though his breathing was becoming harder and shorter as the seconds passed. He was worried that he was going to have a panic attack if he was left in the darkness on his own for much longer. Lucky for him, he didn't have to distress, as light footsteps became within earshot.

"Bradley? Are you there?" He called uncertainly, making his way forwards. The footsteps stopped. The air became still. Ed held his breathing and turned around, only to have the pommel of a sword rammed into his forehead. Staggering backwards, he felt his head spin and the scraping of a blade being sheathed. He didn't even feel the pain as it was so quick, his forehead quickly becoming numb. His eyes rolled back into his skull, his arms becoming limp.

Then everything went black.

* * *

When Ed woke up, his head was pounding and pain pulsed through his forehead. He groaned loudly as he sat up, lifting a hand to his face. It stung like hell, so naturally his hand shot back at the touch. He remembered faintly that he'd lost sight of Bradley, and soon afterwards something was smashed into his forehead so hard that it had caused him to pass out.

As he tried to get up, he quickly fell back over. He hadn't noticed that his legs had fallen asleep after collapsing into a weird position, and who knew how long he'd been unconscious. Growling to himself, Ed tried to remember what had actually hit him. It felt like metal, but it wasn't large. He'd heard the scraping of a blade, so there was a high chance it could've been Bradley.

"Damn him..." He cursed, taking a look around. The place was almost completely dark, except for some light shining on broken pipes and a tiled floor. So, he hadn't been moved from where he was originally. That was good, but how was he going to find his way out of here? He doubted there would be anyone from the military down here.

Ed waited a few minutes, rubbing his legs to get the blood flowing again. Once he could feel them, he scrambled to his feet and headed towards the windows. Unfortunately for him, he was too short to see past the window frame. A vein popped in his forehead as he turned around and started to feel his way, keeping his hands out in front of him. He ran them across the walls, trying to ignore the sticky grime coating his fingers. Considering how dirty this place was, he suspected that the homunculi didn't come down here very often. That or they were just lazy.

He continued to think about the conditions of the basement until he tripped over something, probably a pipe, and landed flat on his face, which unfortunately hadn't recovered. It took all of Ed's strength not to cry out in agony as pain pulsed through his wound. Gritting his teeth, he suddenly felt hot stuff trickling down his forehead and onto his chin. Automatically reaching out to feel it, Ed assumed that it was blood. Great, just what he needed at a time like this. He was becoming more and more vulnerable to anything that found him here. He was bleeding; his forehead was throbbing; he was bruised from the day before; he was surrounded in complete darkness and he had no idea where he was going.

On top of all that, he was worried about Alphonse. He'd up and left him with Riza, but he was sure she could look after him until he returned. However, since he was hopelessly lost himself, he didn't know when he'd be able to return. Maybe he should've brought Al with him? No, he was too ill to leave. It was a good idea to leave him at their apartment.

Edward held a hand to his chest as he felt his heart pound against his ribcage loudly. A lump formed in his throat unexpectedly as his breathing increased. He felt another panic attack coming along as he continued to think about his brother and the surrounding darkness.

"Scared, pipsqueak?"

The blond alchemist whirled around with a small gasp of surprise. His heart was in his throat, golden eyes darting from one part of the room to the other. They found nothing but blackness, only causing him to panic more. As he searched, he heard footsteps from behind him.

"Envy!" Ed cried. His body spun towards the sound of the footsteps, and he saw the skinny figure of the homunculus making his way forward. The sky outside cleared, lighting up the room. Moonlight streaming from the broken windows pooled onto Envy's already pale skin, making it glow white while two amethyst eyes shone eerily in the darkness.

"I see Wrath left you stranded," He snickered, stopping just a few metres away.

"Yeah, and you can start by showing me the way out of here," Edward snarled, transmuting his automail into a blade. "Or I'll make you!"

Without warning, Envy lunged straight for him with a chuckle. Ed barely had enough time to raise the blade his right arm sported. Digging into the homunculus' hand, Ed threw Envy away from him. He landed neatly on the floor and kicked Ed's legs, knocking him over with ease. Too slow to scramble up, Envy held him down with his foot.

"Nice try, but we both know you're no match for me." The green-haired homunculus sneered, resting a hand on his knee.

"Screw you!" Ed spat, scrabbling away at Envy's ankle. Envy only laughed at his attempts to break free, but his laughter was soon turned into a howl as Ed managed to slice his foot off with his automail blade. The homunculus staggered backwards, arms flailing around to balance himself. His dismembered limb faded into ash while red electricity sparked around the stump, reforming a new appendage. Ed hastily scrambled to his feet, smirking as he pointed his bladed arm forwards. "I think we're pretty even."

Foot now renewed and healed, Envy hissed viciously. "You scum! You're going to pay for that!"

Ed's pride didn't last too long as Envy lunged at him, throwing a punch at his face. Considering Envy weighed at least two or three tonnes (thanks to his true form), he could really cause massive damage with kicks or punches. Now that he was furious at having his foot cut off, he put a lot of energy behind his fist and struck Ed right where the sword's pommel had earlier hit him. Of course, Ed and Envy had sparred before, but Envy hadn't been using half of his strength then. Ed hadn't pissed him off to that extent where he had to give a good punch or kick.

Collapsing to the floor with a slight gasp of surprise, Ed brought a hand to his face again. The bleeding had increased considerably and blood was flowing down at a fast pace. He tried blinking and looking around, but all he could see was red. The blood was blinding him; he couldn't see.

Envy seemed pleased, but his anger remained. He had to get rid of it. Luckily for him, Ed had just broken their deal, so he could take it out on him. Wrath had told him he seemed reluctant to kill off the remaining soldiers, and that was definitely breaking the deal.

"Now then," Envy cracked his fingers. "I think it's about time I take care of you. You broke our deal, right?"

"Maybe so," Ed coughed out weakly. "But don't forget, you're the ones who broke it first..."

Teeth grinding together, Envy leapt forward and kicked Ed in the ribs. "Shut up, you runt! Even if your brother's body is breaking apart, you're still going to pay for what you did to me just now!" He screamed as he lashed out another blow. Ed tried to crawl away, but it was a futile attempt considering he couldn't even stand up while Envy was perfectly fine. Now that the homunculus was angry, Ed didn't expect himself to be leaving in a good condition at all.

"You just can't stop being so proud of yourself, can you?" Envy said. "You'd fit the name 'Pride' _very_ well!"

By this point Ed was close to passing out again, but that didn't stop Envy at all. He raised his foot for another blow, hoping to knock him out at least.

"Stop, Envy,"

"What now, Wrath?" Envy whirled around, annoyed at being interrupted.

Bradley stepped into view, hands behind his back. "If you kill him now, he'll be of no use to us. I know that you're angry, but calm down. Father will see to this, I'll make sure of that." He peered past and looked at the crumpled heap at Envy's feet. "Fullmetal, I hope you're prepared to meet our Father."

Edward snorted, trying to pick himself off the ground, though was pushed down again by Envy. "Good, that means I can force him into restoring Al's body properly."

Bradley nodded to Envy, who then kicked again on Ed's bleeding forehead, this time silencing him. His mind was slipping away into unconsciousness, but his body remained awake and aware to the horrible pain he was in. He kept his eyes shut, the blood now completely covering them, as he felt himself being lifted into the air roughly and swung over a shoulder. Envy's shoulder, probably. Where were they going to take him now?

* * *

Back at Ed and Al's apartment, Riza had set Alphonse back onto the sofa as he hadn't woken up yet. She hadn't gone near the bucket which Al had vomited into, instead abandoning it somewhere outside to rid of later. She'd originally left it where it was, but the smell had become so bad she couldn't stand it.

Looking at the clock, she saw that it turned 8 PM. Ed had left about an hour ago, and still hadn't returned. She turned back to Al and watched him stir uncomfortably, letting out small whimpers now and again. His face was pale and he was dripping in sweat, but she didn't know what to do to make him feel better. Ed had told her that the doctor had said that he couldn't find out what was wrong with him, so there wasn't much she could do except watch over him until Ed came back.

"Brother..."

Riza's head snapped to her right as she saw Al trying to get up. "Brother... I'm fine..."

"Alphonse, are you alright?" Riza called out, rushing over to his side. Al nodded weakly and coughed into his hand. He looked around, expecting to see Ed somewhere.

"Lieutenant Hawkeye, where's Brother?" He asked. "Did he go somewhere?"

Riza nodded, though she looked uncertain. "Yes, he went out about an hour ago after you fainted. He didn't say where he was going."

Al nodded, looking down, his hair shielding his eyes. "Oh, I see. I suppose we can't do much while he's gone, then."

The two fell into an uncomfortable silence, just passing the time by staring into space. Sometimes Al would cough, or Riza would sigh to herself. If Ed didn't return soon, then Riza would have to stay over. She didn't mind, because looking after Alphonse was more important.

_~ x ~_

**A/N: AHAHAHA! SO WE MEET AGAIN, CLIFFHANGER! 8D And sorry for all the Ed abuse in this one, but you have no idea how fun it is to write torture fics. x'D I don't know if I got carried away with the violence, but I suppose it's not that bad compared to some things I've written when I went absolutely insane with the gore. Oh, me. **

**Right now I'm still panicking because of tomorrow; I was too lazy to hand in my maths homework so I'm totally screwed. Oh well. Enjoy the chapter.**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hey everyone. I know I'm uploading too fast, but I had a large chunk of this chapter already written and I had the day off school yesterday so I had more time to write.**

_~ x ~_

The morning came quickly. Roy hadn't had much sleep during the night, and had overslept. Work was becoming a nightmare and it was hard to keep his eyes open. Pens lay scattered across his desk and the usual documents were piled up around the room. His office looked a mess, but at least he had managed to make himself look decent. Reaching for another paper to sign, he grumbled to himself.

"Ugh... where's Fullmetal, he's meant to be here pouring tea..." He muttered, his head falling to the table. Suddenly at the thought of Ed, he shot up, papers flying into the air and fluttering to the floor. Where _was_ Ed? He hadn't seen him arrive this morning, and he couldn't hear his complaints from the other end of the corridor. True, Alphonse was ill and he could be looking after him, but he was still curious.

Well, Bradley probably knew something about that. After forcing himself to stand up, Roy left the room and headed towards the Führer's office. He sucked in a breath before knocking on the door, waiting for a '_come in_' before entering.

"Sir, I'm sorry to intrude," Roy muttered, stepping inside. "I'm curious to why Colonel Elric isn't here. Is he alright?"

"Oh yes, he's occupied by something," Bradley said, not even looking up. "He might be a while, though."

Roy was silent. So, Ed had arrived after all. As soon as he closed the door, he clenched his fists thoughtfully. This was way too suspicious to him. Ed normally came to work after him, but maybe he was just taking care of a few errands. Then again, the extended 'meeting' with the Führer had suspected him. Who knew, perhaps Bradley could also be in on the deal Ed had made with the homunculi.

There was only one way to be sure.

Later, back in his office, Roy grabbed the nearby phone and quickly dialled a number. He listened to it ring a couple of times, before the person on the other end picked up.

_"Hello...?"_ Came the sleepy reply.

"Lieutenant Hawkeye," Roy spoke into the mouthpiece, twirling the phone's cord between his fingertips. Maybe he'd woken her up in her sleep, it was her day off today as well. "I need to ask you something."

_"What is it?"_

"It's about Fullmetal. I haven't seen him this morning. The Führer says he's occupied by something, but I'm not too sure. Have you seen him around?" Roy explained as he sat up straight. There was a long pause on the other end of the line.

_"I'm actually at his apartment. Colonel Elric left at around 7 PM last night for some reason... soon after Alphonse collapsed. I was here for a visit,"_ Riza replied hesitantly. _"He never came back."_

Roy swallowed a lump in his throat. "He... never came back? What do you mean?"

_"He hasn't returned yet. I stayed overnight to look after Alphonse. If the Führer says he's occupied, doesn't that mean he's at work?"_

That didn't sound good. Why on earth would Ed go to work after rushing out last night? Surely he would have returned before, right? Roy shivered. He did not like this. It was beginning to scare him, and nothing should scare a General so easily. Now he had to worry about Ed as well as Alphonse. Taking a deep breath, Roy continued.

"Lieutenant, do you mind if you could come here? I know it's your day off but I need to talk to you more privately."

_"Of course, sir. I'm on my way."_

She hung up soon afterwards, leaving Roy to sigh and bury his head in his hands. Things were too confusing for him at the moment; he could barely keep up. So, Ed hadn't returned after leaving the previous night for an unknown reason and he was nowhere to be found the following morning. Roy almost thought he was going insane.

Hang on, what about Alphonse? Roy's eyes widened. He'd forgotten that Riza was looking after him! How could he stay there and look after himself? He could lose consciousness at any time! Slapping a hand to his forehead, Roy swore at himself for being such an idiot. It was a stupid idea to ask Riza to come over here. He should've gone over there instead, so that if anything happened, Al wouldn't be on his own.

* * *

Around 15 minutes later, there was a knock on his door.

"Come in," Roy called. Riza, in full uniform, stepped inside with a salute; another figure wandering into the room behind her. Roy had to stifle a gasp as he shot up straight in surprise. "Alphonse? What the hell are you doing here?"

Al laughed weakly. "I wouldn't let Miss Hawkeye go on her own. She told me you were worried, so I came along too."

"Do you know how ill you are? You could pass out any minute!" Roy tried to keep himself from yelling, but he was having difficulty. At his words, Al flinched though he didn't say anything.

"He'll be fine, sir," Riza cut in, hoping to rid of the tension. "Anyway, let's talk about why you brought us here in the first place. Ed's missing, correct? You claimed that the Führer said he was occupied by something, yet I said he left last night and never returned. What are we going to do about it?"

Roy's shoulders sagged miserably and his eyes shut in frustration. "I just don't know, Lieutenant. I don't know how—"

The General's words were cut off when he noticed Al wasn't in the room. Riza turned around and saw that the door had been opened.

"Alphonse?"

There were a few murmurings from outside. The two looked around to see Al a few metres away, talking to one of the guards that had wandered inside, presumably to another post. Roy tugged at his hair. What was he doing?

Roughly ten seconds later, their conversation ended quickly and Al walked back to them. "I just asked the guard if he saw Brother,"

"Why would you do that?" Roy cried. "This is meant to be a secret!"

Al looked confused. "Is it? I'm sorry. But the guard said he saw Brother enter the military from one of the side entrances, but never saw him leave later on. See? I've gotten us closer!"

Riza and Roy exchanged glances, eyebrows furrowing. The General cleared his throat. "I see. Then we know that he came here."

"Should we check the Führer's office?" Riza asked.

"Don't be daft, he'll only see us," Dismissing the idea almost immediately, Roy scoffed.

Riza rolled her eyes as she folded her arms. "I saw him leaving before we came in here. So the room's empty. We can quickly check for anything without a problem."

Everyone was silent, though Roy turned around, proceeding to march around the corner. "Alright, let's make this quick."

* * *

They reached Bradley's office only a minute later. The door was unlocked, strangely enough. Nobody was around to see them enter, but Riza hung around the door just to be safe. Meanwhile Roy and Al scanned the room. There was nothing out of the ordinary. The desk was clean, no papers scattered across it (unlike Roy's) and the chair was behind it. The banner with the military's logo was pinned up on the wall as usual, and a few chairs lay around the place. Roy sighed and started to wander around, looking out of the windows. The sky was clouded over and a few droplets of rain spattered on the ground below.

Al walked around the desk, looking for anything unusual. Unfortunately everything seemed fine. Until a familiar dizziness returned to his head. "I feel a bit ill..." He moaned, then leant against the banner on the wall. He was about to shut his eyes until something shiny slipped out of the fabric and fell to the floor. Jerking forward, Al bent down and picked up the object, looking at it. It was a silver key.

"I found something!" He called over, getting Roy and Riza's attention. The General hurried over and observed the key with a frown.

"A key? What's it for?"

Al shrugged and looked around. It could've been for the door, but who would hide it like that? Then something else caught his eye. The drawer underneath the desk was closed and had a lock on it. Al reached over and inserted the key into the lock, and turned it. The drawer clicked and Al was able to slide it open. He and Roy peered inside to merely see a button and nothing else.

Roy was about to ask what it was for, though his question was answered shortly when Al pressed it, and a loud clanking was heard from behind them. The two whirled around to see the banner lifting up out of the wall's way while the concrete pulled apart. Riza, now distracted from her guard duty, looked inside and gasped as the wall revealed a stairway going down. The walls were grey, though somewhat dirty, and water dripped from the broken pipes hanging from the ceiling.

"Where does that go?" Riza asked, moving over to join them. A cold draft blew from the stairway, sending uncertain shivers down their spines. "Some kind of basement?"

"Shall we go inside?" Roy asked once the door was completely open. Swallowing, Al nodded nervously. There was a high chance that Ed could be down there, and that was something they had to find out. At his nod, Roy slipped on his gloves and proceeded. "Alright, stay close. Lieutenant, could you keep watch?"

Riza nodded and saluted. "Of course, sir. Just be careful."

Roy returned the nod and managed a nervous smile.

As he and Alphonse advanced to the stairs, there was a heavy slam from behind them. Darkness flooded the area and the air instantly cooled. Al whirled around to see that the door had closed tightly, blocking their exit. There was no button or switch nearby, so the only way to go was downstairs, and it didn't seem so inviting.

"It's too dark in here," Al cursed to himself, gripping the handrail. "I can't see a thing."

Roy didn't respond, but he agreed. Snapping his fingers, he let loose a few small sparks to light up the stairway. Luckily, they didn't have far to go and the bottom was quite near. The two stumbled down and took a look around. It was too dark to see much, but the cracked windows offered some light. The place was littered with pipes, crates and puddles of dirty, icy water.

Squinting, Roy turned to Al. "Do you see Fullmetal anywhere?"

Al shook his head and cried out into the darkness, "Brother! Are you in here?"

Silence.

The two frowned, trying to adjust their eyesight to the black room. All they could hear was the quiet whistling of the wind and rain outside. They were about to find another place to look before faint footsteps caught their attention. A lean figure walked out from one of the corridors leading out from the large room they were in. Luckily the light gave away the person's appearance.

"Envy!" Alphonse almost leapt back in surprise as the androgynous shapeshifter put a hand on his hip and smiled coldly.

Roy cocked an eyebrow, raising his gloved hand. "A homunculus?"

Al nodded and said, "Yes, he has the ability to shapeshift,"

"There are a lot of people coming down here lately," Said Envy cheerfully. "What do you want?"

"Don't play dumb. Alphonse and I know that you're a part of this. Where's Fullmetal?" Roy's eyebrow twitched, his anger increasing. Al glanced at him before looking back to Envy. Snickering, the homunculus remained calm. Roy grinded his teeth and tugged on his gloves. "Answer me! You kidnapped him, right?"

"Aren't you naïve?" Envy laughed, cocking his head to one side playfully. "You really want to know?"

"Yes!" Alphonse yelled, his voice raising in pitch as he moved closer.

Envy's smirk faded, seeming somewhat surprised at Al's outburst. The General growled, now obviously annoyed. His gloved fingers sparked as the material rubbed together. Al's fists clenched tightly together. "Tell us now! Or do you want the General to burn it out of you?"

"Don't be ridiculous! The Flame Alchemist doesn't stand a chance of defeating me!" Envy scoffed.

"Perhaps we'll find out," Roy snapped his fingers, sending a tongue of flames straight into the air, lighting up the dark hallway. Al could hear a loud, high-pitched scream as the fire engulfed Envy's body, searing his skin and burning away the ends of his long hair. By the time the fire had died out, Envy was on his knees, panting furiously. Small flames still licked at his limbs while red sparks regenerated his incinerated flesh. It seemed like he barely had the time to even raise his arm to protect himself before the fire had consumed him.

Looking to his left, Al saw that Roy calmly stood with his right arm raised, fingers at the ready while his left hand was in his pocket casually. He wasn't even  
trembling, as many had done when facing off a homunculus. Envy however, looked infuriated. He shakily stood up and coughed, wiping his mouth.

"Well, you certainly live up to your name,"

Narrowing his eyes, Roy took a step forward, causing Envy to flinch in case he struck again with his boiling inferno. The General eyed the homunculus carefully before lowering his hand. "Now, tell me where Fullmetal is."

Envy turned his head away childishly. Roy scowled and snapped his fingers again, this time intensifying the oxygen levels in the air. Fire blazed across the corridors and seared Envy's skin away. He howled and tried to move away, but his legs and feet had been singed off. Collapsing to the floor, he spluttered and managed to crawl a few centimetres before the dreaded fire leapt into the air and ignited his body once more. He was blown several metres away this time, the red electricity sparking around his searing wounds. Trembling, he pushed himself up so he was on all fours, panting and gasping for air.

He had yet to notice that Roy had marched right over so he was looming above his head fearfully. Envy gritted his teeth and winced as Roy brought his fingers together. Lifting his arm to shield his face, he braced himself for another round.

"I'll ask again," Roy demanded. "Where is Fullmetal?"

Now realising his Philosopher's stone would be wasted of lives, Envy sucked in a breath and looked at the Flame Alchemist in the eyes. "I—"

"Envy, you really are pathetic,"

Roy, Al and Envy snapped their heads to the left as black, stretched claws shot out of the darkness and skewered Roy in his ribcage. He let out a gasp of surprise and fell to his knees, keeping his eyes on the dark figure that stepped forward. Lust folded her arms and sighed, looking away. "You actually let the Flame General put some damage on you?"

"Shut it," Envy spat, rising to his feet and went to stand by his sister. "I just couldn't get to him fast enough."

Lust scoffed and yanked her fingers out of the General's ribs. Roy cried out painfully and collapsed, clutching his side. Blood soaked his uniform and created a small puddle on the floor, mixing with the grimy water. Alphonse dashed forward and knelt over Roy's body, placing his hands on the man's sides and lifting him up.

"General!" He yelled as Roy glared at the two homunculi nearby.

"Humans really are weak!" Envy jeered, seemingly glad the Flame Alchemist was injured after scorching him several times over. Al shot him a dirty look, which Envy whistled at with an amused laugh.

Roy snorted, "You should talk, you're the weakest opponent I've had in a while,"

Jaw tightening, Envy strode forward angrily and stomped viciously on Roy's open wound. The General screamed loudly as the blood flow increased, dampening even more of his uniform and soaking Envy's foot. He seemed to care little, not moving an inch. A wide, demented grin spread across his face. "Better keep your mouth shut, General. You're in no position to get cocky."

Al begun to panic, his breathing increasing as he looked over Roy's bloody side. "General, please, hang on! Uugh..." Alphonse moaned and clutched his stomach, suddenly feeling dizzy. Lust seemed a little surprised, but Envy burst out laughing, finally removing his foot from Roy's ribs.

"Looks like that body of yours isn't going to last much longer!" He sneered, narrowing his eyes.

"Wh-what do you mean? What are you talking about?" Al growled, sweat dripping off his forehead.

Envy glanced at Lust, who gave him a small nod. The shapeshifting homunculus turned back to face Al and Roy, sighing and placing his hands on his hips. "Well, I suppose there's not much use in keeping it a secret anymore. Kid, do you even know how you got that body of yours back? It wasn't your brother who did it, you know."

Alphonse looked at Envy in confusion, who rolled his eyes. Roy merely listened while trying to stop the bleeding from his wound, failing miserably.

"We did it. Our Father transmuted a new body for you," Envy explained. "Your precious older brother agreed to do anything for us in return. Equivalent exchange, right?"

Amber eyes widening, Al choked on a gasp and stumbled backwards. He felt water seep into his clothes but he could care less at that moment. Envy had to be lying... that was his speciality. This was all too much for him to handle. After thinking it over for a few seconds, Al frowned and glared at the two homunculi angrily. He hadn't been angry in so long, so it had probably built up.

"He wouldn't! Brother would never do that! You liar!" He spat, though he noticed Roy's somewhat calm but pained expression. "General... you aren't surprised?"

"Fullmetal told me... only more than a day ago," Roy spluttered between gasps.

Al scrambled away from him in shock, crying, "So he did? And he never told me?"

Roy remained silent, looking away guiltily. Al seemed hurt but calmed himself down, realising Ed did it to keep him from panicking. He supposed it was the right thing for him to do, but it was still upsetting. "I see..."

Suddenly, Al jerked forward and coughed heavily. Red liquid spattered to the floor, and he realised it was blood. His amber eyes enlarged in surprise, showing white all around. A low chuckle caught his attention.

"Aw, I see your container is at its limit," Envy teased. Al and Roy both snarled in unison. The tension between them only lasted a few seconds before Lust cut into their conversation.

"Envy, we need to go. Father is waiting. We've wasted too much time here."

Envy couldn't help pouting, but he gave a small wave to the two on the floor. "Neither of you are going to last much longer, so enjoy the time you have left." He nodded to the deep holes in Roy's ribcage and the blood dribbling from Al's chin. It didn't take long for the two homunculi to disappear around the corner of the lightless corridor.

Al shuddered.

How long did he have left?

_~ x ~_

**A/N: ENVEEEH. I'm so sorry. D': God, I am such a mean person, I just torture everyone in my fanfics. I apologise to everyone. I think this chapter moved way too quickly, but I can't do anything about it.**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Sup noobs? I have chapter 10 for you. C: This one was tons of fun to write, so I hope you enjoy it.**

**Oh, and if anyone wants the full cover picture, just go to my DeviantArt page (the link is on my profile) and look through my gallery. I tried to post a link here but it wouldn't work. :C**

_~ x ~_

"Come on General, you have to get up!"

Alphonse pushed against Roy's uninjured side and tried to help him to stand. The attempt was unsuccessful, however, as Al's severe pains slowed him down. He collapsed next to the General, panting as he clutched his chest. He felt something warm rising to the back of his throat, and couldn't keep it down as he vomited blood onto the floor. Forcing tears of terror back, Al shakily rose to his feet and looked past into the corridor. Envy and Lust had long gone by now, and the air was dead. The blood gushing out of the puncture wounds on Roy's side had slowed down, but it looked like it was still extremely painful.

"Fullmetal is still missing," Roy grunted, surprising Al somewhat as he pushed himself to his hands and knees. "Let's go deeper. We need to find him soon."

"Are you sure you're alright to go further? Your wounds are pretty serious," Al glanced at Roy's uniform, now stained red. The sickly metallic reek of blood was everywhere. It was a little sickening, but they had other things to be worrying about.

Roy shook his head. "I'll be fine. What about you?" He turned to the younger man as his eyebrows furrowed in concern. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm well enough to go on, if that's what you want." Al said determinedly. Roy nodded at his answer and got to his feet. Keeping an arm wrapped around his side, he managed to limp forwards, Alphonse close behind, making sure to keep an eye on him. The dark, pipe-filled corridors lasted an eternity, twisting and turned with no end in sight. Before they were about to collapse in exhaustion and blood loss, Al managed to pick up a light from further down.

He pointed to it eagerly, making sure the General could see. "There's a light! Maybe Brother's there!"

The two crept up slowly and hid behind a wall when voices came within their earshot. One of the voices (the loudest one at that) definitely belonged to Envy, while the other one seemed familiar, though it couldn't possibly be who they thought it was. It sounded awfully like Bradley. The third voice was unknown to them, unfortunately.

"The Flame Alchemist is here? Did you take care of him?"

"Yes. He's probably dead. Lust made sure of it,"

"Edward's younger brother was also with him, though his body is wearing thin as of now,"

"I see..."

Eventually, their curiosity got the better of them, and Al and Roy peered past the walls. Envy was indeed there, standing upright with his arms folded, foot tapping impatiently. And, to their horror, Bradley stood near him, hands resting on his sword. Was he a homunculus too, since he was working with them? The third person was indeed unknown to Roy, but Alphonse had to slap a hand to his mouth to stop himself from crying out in surprise and fear. Roy turned to glance at him, seeing that the young alchemist's eyes were wide and terrified as sweat rolled down his forehead.

"Alphonse, what's wrong?" Roy hissed quietly.

"That's... my father..."

"Your _what?_"

Envy's head suddenly snapped to their position. Roy winced and ducked back behind the wall, but he was too slow to not be seen. Narrowing his eyes, Envy walked over to them, and upon sight, he jumped back in surprise. "You...? You should have bled to death by now!" He spluttered, pointing at Roy.

"Envy, what's this about?" Came the third, unknown voice. Al and Roy heard shuffled footsteps as the person made their way over. Observing carefully, Roy saw that it was a middle-aged man with a golden hair and beard. He was dressed in a white toga and wore sandals on his feet. He was accompanied by Bradley, who also became rather curious to see who the intruders were.

Looking back, Alphonse still seemed to be terrified, Roy noted. Didn't he say that this man was his father? That couldn't be true. Though, this stranger did have the same gold eyes and hair as Al did, and looked rather similar (despite being a lot older, at least in his 40's). Roy decided to be rather firm, so he walked out right into the large room that the corridor let into and held a gloved hand in front of him.

"I don't know who you are, but you must have something to do with Fullmetal. Do you know where he is?"

The man in the toga looked a little confused, and stroked his beard thoughtfully. "'Fullmetal'? Who do you mean by that?"

"I'm talking about Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist." Roy started to lose his patience. His fingers sparked warningly, which Envy flinched at. That was good, he should be scared. "And who are you?"

"You seem to have a lot of questions there," The man said, shaking his head with a sigh. Then he suddenly jerked forward, bringing his face uncomfortably close to Roy. "Wait, aren't you the Flame Alchemist, Roy Mustang?"

Roy nodded, taking an unsure step backwards. The man seemed even more confused. "Though, Envy told me you were dead." He turned around, glaring daggers at the shapeshifter. "What happened?"

"I-it was Lust's fault!" Envy protested hurriedly, though realised no one was buying it. "Forgive me, Father. I can finish him off for you if you want now."

"Father?"

Alphonse finally stepped out, looking completely confused himself. "This person here is your father? How come..." He trailed off.

Envy put his hands on his hips and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I forgot. He looks like Hohenheim, right? That fool of a human?"

"How do you know him?" Al shot back defensively, this shoulders stiffening. Envy only laughed in amusement.

"That's because _my_ father told me. He's the one who restored your body for you, kid."

Envy's 'Father' was quiet for a while, though he quickly turned to Al with an unusually friendly smile. It was rather creepy, seeing as he managed to make Envy cower. Al swallowed as he walked over to him. "Ah yes, I remember now. Your brother made a deal with us to restore your body, one I happily accepted."

Ignoring him almost completely, Al sucked in a breath and raised his voice. "What have you done with my brother?" He cried.

Even Bradley flinched. 'Father' was very surprised, while Envy had taken a few steps back, his eyes widening somewhat. Roy gazed at the teenager with curiosity, watching as his anger flared at every passing second.

After a moment, Father frowned, looking very displeased.

"Your brother failed to obey our orders, therefore breaking the arrangement we made with him. I cannot tell you where he is."

Now about to completely lose his temper, Alphonse was about to speak again before Bradley cut in as he wandering up to stand by Father. "Should I take care of them?" He asked, nodding to Al and Roy.

"Please do."

Roy cringed as Bradley drew his second sword and advanced towards them. He whipped around and screamed at all, "Alphonse, run now!"

Only managing a small glance at the General, Al noticed Envy had joined Bradley's side, looking awfully irritated and bothered. He brushed his long bangs away from his face and sighed. "You're really starting to annoy me. Guess you'll both have to die, and you were such important sacrifices as well."

Well, Roy didn't really know what Envy meant when he said 'sacrifices', but he wasn't willing to wait to find out. He turned to face Al, who was still frozen on the spot. He didn't want the young alchemist to be injured any further, especially seeing his body in this kind of state. It just wasn't fair on him.

"Run!"

"No, General! You're outnumbered!" Al countered fiercely, gesturing to Envy, Bradley and Father.

"Your brother's waiting for you. And as the Flame Alchemist, I won't be defeated so easily." Roy said with a grin. Al gave him a worried look, though edged towards the corridor they had used. Picking his pace, Al raced forwards, clutching his left arm as another jolt of pain shot up it. The explosions of fire and the screams as agony echoed in his ears as he desperately looked around. The corridors looked exactly the same; he didn't know which way to go.

The pain was awful. Al hadn't actually ran in a long time, and now his body was so weak every step almost killed him. He was terrified he was going to fall down and die on the spot, leaving Ed wherever he was. Although, he had a feeling he didn't have far to go, even though the whole place was like a maze. He stumbled over pipes and often fell against the walls when he felt dizzy, but he wasn't going to stop until he found Ed.

The General probably couldn't hold out for long. Now, Al wasn't denying he was a great alchemist, but fighting two homunculi (if Bradley was a homunculus at all) at the same time was a death sentence. If it was just Envy, he could have handled it quite easily, though Bradley was a completely different story. Ed had told him that he'd drawn out his swords so fast that you didn't even notice it. And what about their father? If he was powerful enough to create them, then how much damage could he do? For some reason, Al didn't think he'd interfere, seeing as he ordered Bradley to take care of Roy himself. That was fine; Roy was already in a bad shape.

Al just had to keep going.

* * *

For a second, Ed didn't know why he felt so horrible. He tasted blood in his mouth and he felt the stuff crusting his entire forehead and all over his eyes. Most of his body felt numb. Then, he remembered.

He recalled the feeling of his bones cracking and twisting when Envy had beaten him up. It didn't hurt as much now, but the pain was still there. Wincing, he tried to stand up, almost instantly falling back. Looking behind him, he saw that his back was against the wall, his arms spread next to him. Even the blade on his arm was still there.

Calculating how long he was half-unconscious for was not easy, nevertheless Ed estimated it was around several hours at least, maybe even half a day. He never fell asleep, but he was in too much pain for his mind to be fully awake. He sighed. This was just great. Now, he had to check for other damage.

Though when he looked down at his legs, he instantly bit back a stream of curses.

His automail leg was destroyed. Ed glared at the twisted and mangled metal. It only worsened the situation when Ed found that he was unable to walk with his leg broken.

The damage was too much for even Winry's automail to cope with. For starters, most of his boot had been ripped off, and at least three toes were missing. The plating covering the shin had also been torn right off, one or two screws still hanging out. The kneecap was gone, and masses of tiny wires lay in a tangled mess on the floor while fragments of metal shards were scattered around Ed's body. There was absolutely no way it would work now.

Peering to his right, Ed saw that his arm was more or less intact, besides from the plating covering his forearm was lying crumpled a few feet away. He suspected Envy had done it (considering Bradley couldn't really destroy automail with his swords) to prevent him from escaping. Though Ed was curious as to why they hadn't taken him straight to their Father. Wasn't he going to punish him in some way or another after what he'd refused to do? Or was he just going to let him rot here? In his opinion, the homunculi shouldn't have expected him to carry out such tasks. It was ridiculous.

Realising he wouldn't be going anywhere any time soon, Ed swore heavily and let his head fall back against the wall. Crawling would be a little pointless; the floor was littered with pipes and there was no way he'd get himself in a poorer condition than he was already in. He'd just have to wait until someone came along. That someone being a sadistic psychopath like Envy, presumably.

"Brother!"

Ed looked around. Was he hearing things?

"Brother! Where are you?"

No, he was definitely not hearing things. That was Al. What on earth was he doing down here? He would get himself killed in his state! Ed leaned forward to see a figure darting back and forth between the corridors to his left. The person was hunched, seemingly holding onto his arm. Judging from his height and haircut, Ed realised it was Al for sure. He waved over to him.

"Hey! Al! I'm over here!" He cried. Al stopped and let out a gasp of surprise, racing over to him almost immediately.

"Brother! Are you alright? Just look at your leg!" He almost broke down on the spot, tears in the corner of his eyes as he knelt down, placing his hands on Ed's shoulders. Lifting an automail hand to place on his brother's, Ed gave him a weak smile.

"Hey, it's alright. I'm fine. What are you doing down here?" He asked, his smile fading.

Al wiped his eyes. "You were gone all night, Brother. The General and Miss Hawkeye were just as worried as I was, so we came to look for you. We found the Führer's secret basement, and we had an encounter with Envy."

"Where is everyone now?"

"The General's currently fighting the Führer and Envy right now. Though, I don't know how long he's going to last." Al said solemnly. Ed pushed himself up so he was on all fours, looking down the corridors. He tried to listen for anything, though only a soft whistling of the wind outside could be heard.

"You're right, he won't last long. He needs to get out of there now!" Ed said, trying to stand, though Al quickly took his arm and slung it over his shoulder. He lifted his older brother up and smiled at him.

"Alright, but we both need to go,"

Ed furrowed his eyebrows in concern. "Will your body be able to hold out?"

Al nodded, then began to walk. It was a bit difficult for Ed to hop; still he seemed to manage. The only problem was how long Al was going to last. He had smears of blood on his chin, and that was worrying enough. They walked quietly for several minutes, before Al spoke up over the silence.

"Envy told me about how you got my body back,"

Swallowing, Ed took a look at his brother's face. He didn't seem angry in the slightest, but he looked hurt. Was he upset over not being told or the fact Ed was actually working with the homunculi in a way? He felt a bit hesitant to ask him.

"I'm so sorry, Al," He muttered. "I guess I just panicked. Your armour was so beat up... I thought for sure you weren't going to make it."

A small laugh snapped Ed's head up. "Don't worry about it. As long as we're both alive, it doesn't matter."

"Al..." Ed started, instead deciding to hold his tongue. He could tell Al was lying, but he didn't want to start an argument with them both in such bad shape. He could lose his consciousness again or Al could become violently ill. It just wasn't the time, especially with Roy in a very dangerous position.

"There was someone else there," Al mentioned. "Envy called him his father, and he looked exactly like Dad."

"I know, Al," Ed sighed as his mouth twitched from the mention of Hohenheim. "He's not him. I was surprised when I saw him, too, he acted different and didn't seem to know who I was at the time."

Giving a nod, Al continued his way without replying. He had a feeling that man wasn't Hohenheim, but it wasn't that convincing when they looked so alike.

Though, his thoughts were interrupted when he felt uncertain of himself. Was he going the right path? It felt like he was going too deep. Previously, when he had came down here with Roy, they hadn't actually gone that far. The room where Envy, Bradley and their Father were conversing in was roughly the size of the military's cafeteria, and that wasn't too big.

He saw a light up ahead, and they couldn't turn back now. Ed was having trouble standing up, and he himself was starting to feel dizzy again. He had also began to sweat a lot, and he was hoping Ed wouldn't notice.

"I think we're there now, Brother," Al said softly, and helped Ed further out. When they reached the room the corridor led out into, Al almost gasped.

It was absolutely massive.

Colossal pillars towered above them and held up the high-up ceiling, pipes also stretching across the walls. There were rusted cogwheels turning slowly, probably keeping the pillars steady. It was much brighter in here too, so they could see clearly and also had a glimpse of themselves. Ed had dried blood all over his forehead and eyes, and parts of his hair had turned stiff with it as well. Al could also get a better look at the mass of wires dangling from his leg, which also dragged bits metal behind it. However Al wasn't any better, as Ed saw. He had spots of blood on his shirt and mouth, and his skin was covered in a layer of cold sweat.

"Where... where are we?" Al asked, looking around.

Ed didn't say anything, instead starting to stare at the ground. He knew exactly where they were. This was the room Father had restored Al's faulty body. Of course, Al wasn't awake at the time and couldn't remember being dragged down here. He'd been torn apart somewhere outside, above the basement, but Father had probably wiped his memories away of that. Al said all he remembered before he woke up in his body was that he was going somewhere with Ed.

A clanking of metal snapped their heads upwards. A familiar figure waved to them.

"Hi!"

Envy was sitting on one of the gigantic cogwheels, one that wasn't moving. It was well on the other side of the room and was quite high up, although they could still see Envy clearly. He had the usual smirk, though they noted that he looked tired. Al had left him fighting with Roy, so why was he here?

"What are _you_ doing here?" Al spat. "I thought the General would've killed you already. Unless you ran off like a coward?"

The smirk Envy sported was quickly replaced with a scowl, yet he didn't jump down to attack them. Instead he nodded his head to his left. Al and Ed looked in the direction he nodded to in confusion.

But that confusion went when Roy's body was tossed into the room from a corridor on the other side, Bradley close behind, and went to stand next to him. The blades in his hands were dripping with blood, along with a few places in Roy's shoulders. He was still awake, thankfully, however he was clutching his open wounds, teeth gritted tightly together. Seconds later, Father entered.

"The Flame Alchemist was not as impressive as I thought."

"So he's not dead yet?" Envy drawled, yawning into his hand. "What an eyesore!"

Roy shot the homunculus a dirty look, one which Envy didn't notice.

"Colonel!" Ed cried.

"How many times have I told you, Fullmetal," Roy coughed, a vein popping in his forehead. "It's 'General'!"

Before Ed had the chance to reply, Envy scoffed rather loudly. "This is ridiculous. Wrath, why haven't you killed him yet? How did you manage to let him in here in the first place?"

Bradley, or rather 'Wrath', didn't reply. He merely stood there as he sheathed his swords. "Don't underestimate humans like him, Envy."

Snorting and rolling his eyes, Envy stood up and peered downwards. Red sparks crackled as a smooth white line ran over his body, changing him into a hawk. He only used his wings to glide down to the floor below, not even waiting to reach the ground before he changed back into his preferred form. When he did step lightly onto the ground, he shot a glare at Ed.

"Well then, maybe we should just settle it here right now, pipsqueak. We kept you alive for when you changed your mind or not, yet seeing as you didn't, I don't think we have any use for you."

Ed flinched, just in case Envy lunged. However he only glanced at Father, who gave him a small nod.

"Finish it quickly then, Envy."

Al tried to move Ed away, though he fell onto his knees and coughed up blood again. Ed was also sent sprawling, as he was unable to stand on one leg. This just made things easier for Envy, who darted forward nimbly, transforming his arm into a blade.

"FULLMETAL!" Roy screamed, trying to crawl over, though his wounds stopped him from going any further.

Bringing his arm to shield his face, Ed braced himself for the impact.

_I've failed... I've failed to bring Al's body back. Forgive me, Al..._

_~ x ~_

**A/N: Long chapter! :D Aaaaand another cliffhanger. I realised I'm leaving too many. I'm sorry. :C I need moar reviews. Chapter 9 only got one. That displeases me. **


	11. Chapter 11

**Welp, here's chapter 11 for you. Hope I didn't go psycho with the gore this time (God I love gore). :C Would've been up sooner, but I was drawing a really big and confusing picture. I also had to rewrite bits of this and uuugh it was hard. And it's the Easter Holidays now so I have more time to write. 8D**

**Enjoy. o3o**

_~ x ~_

In all his honesty, Edward had expected it all to be slow and painful. Envy loved to cause pain (especially mental pain) rather than killing, so it was typical that he'd turn the blade or something when it reached his chest or stomach.

Yet the pain never came.

The hot, sticky feeling of blood reached the side of his face, neck and hand, but other than that he didn't feel anything. Was he dead now? Opening his eyes, Ed peered in front of him cautiously.

Alphonse was standing in front of him.

Alphonse had Envy's blade right through his chest, the tip of which Ed could see clearly from behind. The blade made a sickening twist as Envy yanked it out, transforming it back into a flesh arm. Al gave out a gurgled cry before falling backwards. Mouth turning dry, Ed took a look at Al's condition. The puncture in his chest was gruesome enough to make Ed want to throw up when he thought about it. Though more importantly, Al's eyes were blank while his face was drained of colour.

Above him, Envy snorted, "What, you wanted to die first? That'll be hard on your brother,"

"Al...?" Ed murmured quietly, lifting Al's head gently into his lap. "Al!"

Meanwhile from the other side of the room, Roy watched the whole scene with his eyes. Just as Envy was about to drive the blade into Ed, Alphonse had quickly leapt up and shielded him with his full body, and Envy didn't have the time to stop. Besides, Roy doubted Envy cared who died first, that wasn't any concern to him.

But the sudden speed of it was shocking. A moment ago Al had tried to stop blood from spilling out of his mouth whilst kneeling on the floor, and the next he was barring Envy's way strongly.

In his thoughts, Roy hadn't noticed Ed was starting to panic. His eyes had widened considerably, and his body was beginning to tremble.

"Bastard!" He spat viciously at Envy. "I'll kill you!"

Envy only laughed at the alchemist's rage. "What, you? I'd like to see you try with your condition," He sneered, nodding to Ed's leg. Unfortunately for him, Envy hadn't realised Ed could still perform alchemy, seeing as his remaining automail arm hadn't been destroyed. He immediately clapped his hands and pressed them to the ground below, thrusting concrete spikes straight into Envy's stomach.

After biting down a gasp, Envy snapped the spikes digging into his abdomen and leapt back several metres. "You... you little...!"

Eyebrow twitching at the word 'little', Ed clapped his hands again, sending more spikes in Envy's direction. The shapeshifter continued to avoid them steadily, but he was being forced further back each time.

Roy suddenly had an idea. It was risky or not whether it would work, but he was willing to give it a shot. With the little energy he had left, Roy tightened the glove on his right hand and lifted his arm. He snapped his fingers, groaning under the pressure, and sent a small tongue of flames into the air. They spun towards several of the slow-turning cogwheels. The flames rose above them and singed the metal pipes attaching them to the wall. The metal burned a bright red, then white-hot, before crumbling away and finally releasing around three or four cogwheels along with chunks of concrete.

Ed squinted, trying to figure out the General's reasoning. His question was answered split seconds later when he saw that the cogwheels were falling towards Envy.

"What the hell are you doing?" The shapeshifter hissed, then turned and snarled at Wrath. "Don't let him do anything, you moron!"

Wrath didn't move. He merely stared above Envy's head. The homunculus gave him an odd look, before lifting his head to look upwards. He let out a cut-off scream of surprise as he was crushed under the falling gears and concrete. Ed winced as he heard the disgusting crunching of bones and splattering of blood. Soon enough, the red liquid started to seep out between the cracks of the debris and pooled onto the floor.

Roy let out a small smirk of victory, though collapsed afterwards, arms falling limp by his side. He'd lost way too much blood after his fight with the Führer, but he was willing to give the last of his energy to protect Ed and Al. Luckily he managed to stay awake, but every second was painful for him. He gave Ed a small nod that he was still fine.

Now that Envy was trapped under the fallen debris and taken care of for at least a while, Ed turned his attention back to Al. He was still unconscious, and the amount of blood he was losing was really freaking Ed out.

"Come on, Al," He whispered. "You'll be fine! I'll get you out of here."

"And how do you plan to do that with the condition _you're_ in?" Wrath cut in, striding forward. "Do you think you'll be moving with that leg of yours?"

Whipping around suddenly, Ed squirmed away and snarled. "I'll just get rid of you too, and your Father's next in line,"

The Führer remained silent, only angering Ed more by the second.

Clapping his hands, Ed sent spikes shooting towards him, though his efforts were futile as Wrath removed his eye patch, the Ouroboros tattoo sliding into view. The homunculus dodged with no effort at all, yet didn't race forward to attack as Ed assumed him to. Was he just waiting for him to tire out instead?

"Fullmetal, don't be so rash!" Roy chided, struggling to sit up. Ed ignored him.

"I swear, you'll all pay for this!" The alchemist snarled angrily. "Either you restore Al's body properly or die!"

"Perhaps his body wasn't stable," Said Father. "We did allow him to feel things once more. Aren't you just happy that he had that chance?"

"No! I want him to live longer than a few months!"

Father sighed, turning his head away tiredly. "But you caused so much damage to my home. I think it would be wise to rid you both at the same time. The Flame Alchemist will be following shortly."

Roy's dark blue eyes widened at the mention of death. Father frowned. He'd hoped that the man would've died while fighting Wrath, but there wasn't enough time to finish him off before Ed and Al reached the Throne Room. Father had expected the man to die earlier than this, but him being the General of the Military, he reconsidered his thoughts shortly after he was still conscious after his fight with Wrath. He withstood his ribs being speared by Lust (who had now left the building for another errand) and stabbed several times by Wrath and dragged all the way to the Throne Room to be thrown onto the floor.

"Don't you dare hurt the Colonel! Or Alphonse!" Ed held his arms defensively over his brother, while edging towards Roy.

Father opened his mouth to reply before a huge roar stopped them in their tracks, as two of the cogwheels keeping Envy under lock-down was thrown against the ceiling.

"He's out already?" Wrath's eyebrows shot up for a second, before falling back into place.

Cursing to himself, seeing his work going to waste, Roy slammed his fist against the ground. "Dammit!"

Instead of what he was used to seeing, Ed saw a huge figure forcing itself upwards. It was Envy's true form. Ed noticed one of his forearms was bent backwards and the crimson sparks showered down from his body rapidly, healing his wounds and forcing the bits of concrete out of his skin.

Envy really didn't like his true form. It was a colossal dragon-like monster, the souls of the people from Xerxes coating his neck and shoulders with two mismatched magenta orbs visible through the fall of a raven mane. His body was covered in dark emerald scales with eight human limbs and strange, human teeth lining his jaws. It really was terrifying, and he thoroughly hated it.

But the power it offered was _wonderful_.

Lashing his tail from side-to-side, Envy shot Roy a death glare. "That son of a bitch's going to pay!" He snarled, a lower voice echoing with his own. "Don't tell me he's not already dead?"

Father peered at Roy, who glanced back and forth from him to Envy. "He's still alive, but he's weak,"

The situation was not good.

Al had a hole through his chest and Roy had exhausted himself after fighting with Wrath, though he still managed to stay awake. Ed himself couldn't walk and the homunculi had the upper hand. If Roy wasn't going to die of blood loss, Envy was going to kill him for sure. His short temper made Ed wonder if Envy was named after the wrong sin.

His desperate thoughts were interrupted as Al coughed up a torrent of blood, jerking his head forwards. His breathing was raspy and choked, and his eyes were tightly shut. Everyone turned to face him.

"Al!" Ed held his brother tightly. "You're fine, don't worry about it!"

"Brother..." Al choked. "Get out of here. Envy said I'm not going to last much longer."

"That's right," Envy sneered, butting into their conversation. "Looks like you've only got a few more minutes left."

And he hated to admit it even just to himself, but Ed knew Envy was right. Al's eyes were shrunken and dull, and his mouth down to his chest was completely red, a colour Ed was already sick of seeing. All he wanted was to able to get out of wherever the hell he was. Apparently it was right beneath Central HQ, but how did this go by unnoticed? The place was huge!

Yet as much as he wanted to get out, he had to protect Al and Roy first. If he let them die, then he'd never forgive himself, no matter how much time went by.

Meanwhile, Roy swore at himself over and over for being in such a hopeless situation when he should have protected everyone. What was Riza going to say to him now? He let his head fall to the ground in despair, before it snapped back up.

Wait, hydrogen gas ran through the many pipes crawling over the walls and floor, right? And hydrogen, when mixed with oxygen, was very flammable. Again, he was going to do something risky, though he needed to alert Ed before he performed such an action.

"Fullmetal!" He cried, catching everyone's attention. "Use your alchemy to destroy the pipes! I'm going to light the hydrogen on fire!"

Ed winced. He knew the General's ambition was to blind the homunculi with flames to offer an escape route for him. But he was going to be devoured for sure if he didn't have the energy to get up and run.

"You're an idiot, Colonel!" Ed clapped his hands, setting Al down gently. "But you'd better get out with me!"

"It's General!" Roy yelled back.

Blue lightning sparked forwards as Ed pressed against one of the pipes nearby. Envy immediately dove forward to stop the alchemist, but it was too late. Roy snapped his fingers and a bright red flame flared across the room, catching a hold of the gas that spat out of the opening. Seeing as he was too late to stop the fire from spreading, Wrath stormed over and pierced Roy in his hand, destroying his glove.

"You've been enough trouble as it is," The man growled, eyes glowing red in the bright flames. "Yet if you want to dig your own grave, then that's fine."

Nobody had enough time to speak as the fire quickly spread across the room, devouring everything in its path. Envy quickly switched back to his preferred form and ran over to Father, who looked utterly annoyed. "What do we do now?"

"Bring the Fullmetal Alchemist over here."

"Why? What do you need with him?"

"Don't ask any questions!"

Grumbling to himself and just desperate to get away from the intense heat, Envy raced back over and grabbed Edward by his arm as he tried to stand and haul Alphonse out with him. The flecks of fire forced Ed to squint, but he made out the outline of the shapeshifter quite easily.

"Hold it, pipsqueak," Envy spat, and started to drag him back. "You're not going anywhere.

Ed tried to wriggle out of the homunculus' grip, but Envy's strength and weight was too strong. Al was left knocked out on the floor while Envy harshly yanked Ed forwards where Father was waiting impatiently alongside Wrath. The familiar painful feeling of his arms pulled behind his back was felt as Envy forced Ed to kneel and bow his head. The fire was increasing and was slowly spreading over to Roy and Al, and everyone knew that it wouldn't be long until the whole place was orange with flames.

Watching fearfully, Ed winced as Father tapped his forehead as an eye slit open, a thick red liquid flowing out slowly. Father caught it in his hand and held it close to Ed's face.

"Until now, there was no one suitable enough to bear my sin of Pride. Luckily, a perfect person has arrived."

Lashing out kicks was hard, since his automail was destroyed right through and his other leg was trapped beneath his own weight. Secondly, Envy wouldn't allow him to move. It was terrifying to watch as Father tilted his hand, allowing the weird red stuff to dribble into the cut on his forehead. At first, Ed felt nothing at all. He didn't even feel the liquid on his face.

Until a jolt of electricity ran through his spine, cracking every single bone in his body. He couldn't help but throw back his head and scream as the pain jerked his arms out of Envy's grasp and snapped them to impossible angles. His whole body felt like it was being turned inside out; his blood boiled to what felt like a 100°C and his eyes and mouth burned. Falling onto his side, Ed started to lose his mind as the pain continued to jerk his body around, erasing his skin away, the familiar rectangle-shaped transmutation marks coming into view. He had no idea what was happening to him, but whatever came out of it, he knew it wasn't going to be good at all.

During the intense moment, Roy felt his own fire start to lick at his face. Alphonse was definitely not awake, as his body lay in a puddle of his own blood several metres away. Luckily the fire was further away from him, but it wouldn't be long until it did reach him. Roy accepted he was very likely to perish here, though he had hoped Ed would be able to escape with Al at the very least. Now Father had injected him with something his vision was too poor to make out, and now the poor thing was screaming his lungs out, electricity crackling over his entire body.

Roy would've called out, but now even he was too weak, though he did notice Envy and Wrath looked unnerved at remaining in the fire themselves, and what was happening to Ed. The fire was only intensifying and even the homunculi were going to lose a lot of lives if they stayed in here for too much longer. Wrath was beginning to cough a little, and Envy looked slightly light-headed due to the smoke in the air.

Finally, the pain subsided, allowing Ed's body to fall unmoving to the floor. Envy peered at him cautiously. "Is he dead?"

"No, just unconscious. We're leaving, now take his body outside and hurry!" Father demanded, turning to leave. Scoffing to himself, Envy slung Ed over his shoulder carelessly and raced after his Father and Wrath to the wall, where Father transmuted a large opening. They were just about to leave before the ceiling above them started to crumble. The fire had melted several of the pillars and cogwheels away, so the building was severely weakened. Father and Envy quickly got out in time, but Roy lost sight of Wrath as the concrete collapsed, blocking the exit. Did he get out or was he crushed? Maybe, but his Ultimate Eye wouldn't really allow that.

Nevertheless, he didn't have the time to be worrying about that. What had happened to Ed? What were they going to do to him?

His thoughts were interrupted when several of the pipes nearby bent and even more hydrogen gushed out into the air, intensifying the flames to their maximum. If he didn't get out of here, he'd die any second now.

* * *

Riza had gotten curious, seeing as her comrades had entered here more than an hour ago. She was wandering around in the hallways, gun loaded and pointed forwards, until she saw smoke drifting around one of the corners. There was also a faint orange glow, so she suspected it was one of the General's attacks. However, that wasn't the case as parts of the ceiling crumbled and blocked her path just as she made out the place ahead of her was on fire.

"General!" She cried, realising that Al was also in there with him. She couldn't break through the concrete in her way, so she raced back upstairs and set the fire alarm off. Five seconds afterwards the alarm started to wail, a rumbling beneath her feet was felt. What the hell was that all about? An explosion?

Racing outside, she saw Havoc at the building's entrance screaming into a phone.

"Yeah, somewhere in the building's on fire! There's also tremors, so it could've been an explosion underground! Hurry up!"

He glanced over to her. "Lieutenant, did you see anything?"

"The basement's on fire," Riza replied stiffly. Havoc raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't know we had a basement."

"In the Führer's office. It's a long story, so I'll explain later! But the General and Alphonse are trapped down there! I couldn't get to them, the ceiling fell down on me."

Havoc accidentally chewed off the cigarette in his mouth in the sudden news. "What are they doing down there? Investigating something?"

"Yes, but for now we just need them out!"

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the wait. One more chapter until the end, guys. o3o**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Sorry about the wait. I had a huge case of depression a few days ago and I wasn't in the mood for writing. I had a bit of art block as well, so now I don't really have much of a choice but to write this. I guess this would've been done earlier but I recently got into watching Soul Eater. So that delayed me. Haha, for once my favourite character _didn't_ die.**

**What would you guys think of an AU from me? I just had an idea...**

**It's about a lot shorter this time, but please enjoy the last chapter.**

_~ x ~_

Fire stung at their eyes as the firemen continued their way downwards. Extra oxygen was provided, seeing as how large the place was and how quickly the fire spread. Huge chunks of the ceiling had already collapsed and two men had almost been crushed underneath them. The heat was unbearable, but it was their duty to get the two people that were supposedly in the basement out.

They only had time to hear that it was General Roy Mustang and a friend of his, Alphonse Elric or something like that. Apparently they had gone to investigate something or someone. They didn't have any time to listen to anything else as a group of them set to putting out the fire and the other group went to search for the two.

Back in the Throne Room, Roy felt himself slipping away into unconsciousness already. The smoke was snatching away all the oxygen, and even staying as close to the floor as possible didn't help in the least. It had been a terrible idea, but at least Ed had gotten away... if he was actually still alive. Alphonse was out cold, and Roy didn't expect him to wake up after what Envy had done to him, unless by some miracle they were rushed to the hospital at that moment.

But he didn't expect anyone to arrive now. They were too far down.

Roy laughed at himself.

_I'm such a fool,_ He thought, before coughing violently. Now he knew how Al felt earlier. He was starting to see spots in his eyes; the smoke taking effect. Sighing, he closed his eyelids and let the soon-to-become death take over him.

* * *

Riza sat outside and tapped her foot impatiently. The firemen that Havoc had called had arrived a while ago and were currently searching the building. The fire wasn't up to the top floor but was raging beneath, threatening to burn away the ceiling above it. Everyone had gotten out safely, but she wondered where Führer Bradley was. He hadn't come out as everyone else did, so maybe he was down in the basement too?

"Lieutenant Hawkeye,"

A voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked up and blinked at the guard above her.

"Yes?"

"They've managed to put out most of the fire," The guard said, but a look of worry crossed his face. "But they can't find anyone inside yet."

Jumping up and almost grabbing the man's shoulders, Riza's eyes widened considerably and her jaw dropped open. "What do you mean? The General and Alphonse are still down there!"

"The search is still going, so they should turn up eventually," The guard turned and watched as the fire engines pulled back and allowed ambulances to park outside. "I'm a bit unsure if they'll be in good condition or not."

Riza slumped back into her seat on the outside wall and let her arms fall on either side of her. If the two were dead, then she'd never forgive herself for letting them go down after Ed. Sure, she'd done her duty and guarded the Führer's office, but she didn't trust her gut and follow them down. She knew that they weren't completely safe, since the homunculi were still running around while she was sure people from the military were on their side.

What did she have to live for if Roy had died? The only reason she'd actually joined the military was to help push him up the ranks and watch his back. She'd promised she'd leap into hell with him, and now it was going to be her fault if he'd died because she wasn't there for him.

She might as well take her life when they announced them dead.

"We've found them!"

Jerking her head forwards, Riza's eyes flickered open to see firemen waving for the ambulances to drive closer as they dragged out two heavily charred and burnt bodies out into the open. Riza managed to recognise Roy's mangled hair and Al's jacket, as his own hair was a black from all the smoke. A huge weight was lifted from her chest.

_Thank God._

Not wasting any time, Riza raced over to the ambulances and asked permission to go to the hospital with her superior officer at least. At one of the men's nod, she leapt in and watched as Roy was put onto a stretcher while an oxygen mask was quickly placed over his mouth and nose. His state was bad, but from the faint rise and fall of his chest, he was still alive. Riza overheard someone mentioning Al's health as well. He wasn't in any better shape, considering some huge puncture wound in his chest, but he was also alive.

But barely. Only time could tell if he was going to recover.

"Do you think he'll be alright?" Riza couldn't help but ask one of the ambulance men nearby, nodding to Roy.

"It's hard to tell," He replied, tilting his head as he ran his eyes over Roy's frame. "His injuries are pretty bad, but I think we made it in time for him to make it."

Sighing in relief, Riza looked out of the back window at the ambulance behind them. "And what about Alphonse?"

The man she was talking to paused and shifted uncomfortably. "Er, I'm really not sure if he'll make a recovery himself, at least not a full one. The wound in his chest goes all the way through, and he was lucky his heart wasn't punctured in the process." He paused again, "Do you happen to know by any chance, _what_ went on down there?"

"I don't know," Riza sighed. "They went down there to search for Edward Elric, Alphonse's older brother. He went missing yesterday, and we thought the Führer had something to do with it. I guess there was a fight..." She trailed off, trying to think about it. There was a high chance Bradley could've been involved, after all, it was _his_ basement they were intruding.

"I see, well we'll see how he is once we reach the hospital."

* * *

Meanwhile, Envy and the new 'Pride' watched the commotion from the top of hill nearby. For Envy, it was rather amusing to observe the humans frantically search for any survivors. He wasn't exactly sure himself if Roy or Al were still alive; the whole basement had collapsed and he didn't want to stick around to find out. Father had successfully transmuted Edward's body at the last second, and they'd escaped just before the ceiling had caved in through a spare tunnel leading upwards. Now they just needed a place to stay, since Father couldn't leave Central. Luckily, the sewars nearby were unnocupied, so there was an option.

Lust had left on an errand shortly she and Envy had wounded the Flame Alchemist, and Sloth was still digging the underground tunnels. Gluttony had been gone somewhere for a while, and Greed had ran away about a 100 years ago. So no one else was something to worry about.

Wrath had unfortunately died under a sudden collapse of the ceiling, seeing as he was the last to try to escape. Father was disappointed, but he had Pride now.

There really wasn't much of a chance anyone would survive under the debris. If they hadn't been found by now, they probably would've suffocated. That didn't matter too much; Roy wouldn't be any more trouble with his flame alchemy, and Al couldn't go after his precious brother.

"Idiotic humans, they'll kill themselves with all that searching," Envy cackled over the silence, glancing at Pride for a reply. To his disappointment, the blond  
teenager didn't respond, instead he continued to stare forwards. How irritating.

Realising that Pride wasn't going to talk, Envy pouted and turned away, though looked back to take in the teenager's details. He looked exactly like the Fullmetal pipsqueak did, though Envy realised they still had the same body.

For starters, Pride had Ed's blond hair, but he wore it long so it reached to just between his shoulder blades. Envy thought it made him look more like a girl. Anyway, the hair wasn't the only thing that stayed roughly the same. Strangely enough, his eyes hadn't changed in colour. In his honesty, Envy had half-expected them to turn a deep violet like his, but they remained gold. However, they were dull and lifeless. You couldn't even see any shine in them. It actually kind of creeped Envy out, because Pride looked like some kind of zombie. There were also thick black lines beneath them, which made him look like he hadn't had enough sleep, and that was weird because homunculi didn't sleep for long.

Besides from his hair and eyes, Envy had noticed a major difference. There were red tattoos all over his body, starting at the base of his neck and crept down to the soles of his feet. They were easy to make out, seeing as Envy was forced to give Pride a copy of his own clothes, skort and all, because he couldn't really walk around naked. He just made the left arm warmer longer so it reached to just below his shoulder.

Envy also noticed that was where his Ouroboros tattoo was.

It was just too strange seeing him with it on his body; Envy didn't like it. But Father had insisted, seeing as he didn't like to waste things, and especially things as important as Ed was. Father had changed a lot of things about him. He'd destroyed Ed's body from the inside out and had rebuilt it, like he had done with Wrath. His automail was replaced with flesh limbs, also.

The noise of wailing distracted both Envy and Pride's attention. They turned their heads to see around three ambulances driving a while away, their lights flashing brightly.

"Maybe they did recover them, then?" Envy cast his gaze over to Pride, who didn't reply, again.

Although, he hadn't spoken since Father had transmuted him. Perhaps he just couldn't speak?

He understood language for sure, because he would nod at a question, but Envy wasn't sure if he was actually capable of speaking for himself. He'd lost all his memories of being Ed, and his body was turned inside out before being recreated, so maybe the force had shocked some major memories out of him. Had he forgotten how to speak completely? If he had, then that would make it difficult to talk to him.

But that didn't matter.

Pride's new body was impervious, nothing could penetrate him either, now. Not even the military would be able to bring him back if they tried.

And Envy laughed, because he knew he was right.

**The End**

_~ x ~_

**A/N: Again, I'm sorry. It's hard to just focus on this. I also really wanted to write an AU, but I always get nervous about stuff like that. Haha.**

**On a lighter note, isn't using the title in the last few sentences awesome? :D**


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